Before the match between Portugal and Colombia, Neves was interviewed by journalists.

You said something very emotional in a recent interview with SIC, mentioning that you're still in touch with your good friend Diogo Jota. Did he make any promises to you about this FIFA World Cup? Can you share that with us?

No. I think first of all, it's always been a dream of his, and he really wanted to participate in the FIFA World Cup. My first World Cup was in Qatar, but unfortunately he got injured and couldn't make it. So for me, the most important thing is that he's by my side, and by our side, to participate in this FIFA World Cup together. Because I know that participating in an event like that is one of very important goals in his career.

What are your expectations for tomorrow's match? Roberto Martínez just said that you've been preparing for this match for a long time. Regarding the weather, do you think Colombia's players will be better adapted? Plus, they have a lot of fans here, almost like playing at home—do you think these factors will give them an advantage?

I hope not. We've been here for a while now and have adapted to the climate and playing conditions in Miami. Many players on our team are also familiar with this environment—I play in Saudi Arabia, for instance, and I've already adapted well to the weather there. So I don't think Colombia will get an extra advantage from these factors. We've done a lot of preparation to minimize this gap as much as possible. We know our strengths and will fight hard to win the match. I hope these factors won't affect us, and won't affect Colombia either, because we all want to play a great match.

You've always been a regular player for the national team, but you haven't played in this FIFA World Cup yet. How are you handling this situation within the team? How do you cope watching matches from the bench?

Of course, it's more difficult watching from the sidelines, but we must always be ready to play when needed. I think the coach has said there's no such thing as a substitute in this national team. We all know we must be ready to help the team whenever called upon.

In a competition like this, we've seen many examples in recent years—every player is important, and everyone will have their moment. We train every day for this. Players who haven't gotten much playing time have trained very hard and done well, just to be ready to do the job when needed.

I want to ask, do you agree with the coach's statement that it doesn't matter whether we finish first or second in the group?

No, we came here with our first focus on the three group matches. We know that in the next round, it doesn't matter who we face, because first we have to get out of the group. So we're only focused on that right now.

We know we're very close to achieving this goal. We want to win every match, and we will try to win every match, because we're a team capable of doing that, and that's what we're focused on right now. As for what will happen in tomorrow's match, we'll do everything we can to win, and then we'll think about the next opponent.

Are you aware that there are many Portugal fans in Bangladesh? They support Cristiano Ronaldo, with millions of followers. Are you aware of this situation? Every time Portugal beats a team like Uzbekistan, tens of thousands of people take to the streets to celebrate. How do you feel about that?

Thank you. He has fans all over the world, which is incredible for us. Because wherever we go, we feel like we're playing at home, and everyone wants us to win. For the national team, to feel that kind of support is truly amazing.

You've won two Nations League titles with Portugal, so you know well what it takes for the national team to win a major tournament. So, what does this Portugal team need to do to have a chance at winning the FIFA World Cup?

This is a very important tournament. We must focus on each match, as I said before, one match at a time. First, we need to get through the group stage, which is our focus right now. As for tomorrow's match, we'll do everything we can to win, and then we'll think about the next opponent.

In your opinion, what risks does Portugal currently face? How much do you know about Colombia? How would you evaluate their performance in the first two matches? How significant would it be for Portugal if we fail to win and lose top spot in the group?

I can't answer that question because we don't consider losing—we only think about winning the match. We're focused on that. We know that Colombia is a very strong team, and we've watched their first two matches, and they played very well. Now we're preparing for this match as best we can, and we hope to get the victory.

We've seen you provide excellent structural stability for the team through long passes and distribution. But Colombia's defense, consisting of Lucumí and Davinson Sánchez, has conceded just 1 goal so far and made 12 blocks. How do you plan to disrupt their rhythm and create space for your attackers?

That's what we're working on. I think from the first match to the second, we've improved a lot in this regard. We need to keep doing this—finding the right spaces, finding gaps between the lines, and creating chances for our attackers, because we have the ability to do this.

At the same time, we also need to create one-on-one situations. From a defender's perspective, our job is to find these opportunities and deliver the right passes. That's also what we expect to do in this match.

How do you view the two different performances Portugal has shown in this tournament? The first match seemed to disappoint the country, while the second match won back recognition. How do you personally feel about this contrast within the team? Starting with the match against Colombia, the intensity of competition will increase, and it's also preparation for the more challenging knockout stage. What kind of Portugal do you expect to see going forward?

In a tournament like this, every match is difficult. Fortunately, we're seeing similar situations in other national teams too. Of course, we play every match to win, and we'll try our best to perform well. We know that in our first match against Congo, we weren't at our best, so we had to make adjustments for the second match. The second match went very well, and we showed our usual level.

As you said, we need to keep improving in the match against Colombia, because I hope we have many more matches to play. If we can perform slightly better in each match than the previous one, we can go further.

Diterjemahkan oleh AI.

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