Vintage Port CITY STAR BERNARDO: THIS GOLDEN GENERATION HAVE GOT REAL TASTE FOR GLORY AFTER WINNING EURO 2016
going and having helped Portugal win Euro 2016 there is no doubt that the World Cup is a huge motivation for him.
“Since I was little I only dreamed of being a professional footballer, nothing else,” he said. “Then with time I was thinking about the big ones, the national team and then the World Cup.
“To win a World Cup would be very special. We are the European champions and we are among the favourites, but it is not going to be easy. There is a lot to work for us to do.” MANCHESTER CITY midfielder Bernardo Silva insists this is Portugal’s Golden Generation.
Silva was a nine-year-old boy growing up in Lisbon when Luis Figo, Rui Costa, Deco, Ricardo Carvalho and a teenage Cristiano Ronaldo failed to make home advantage count at a Euro 2004 tournament the hosts were expected to win.
Portugal were beaten by rank outsiders Greece in the final – and it took them another 12
years to land the European crown and finally put a title alongside their talent.
Silva, 23, missed Euro 2016 with a thigh injury but he feels that success in France, two years ago, has given Fernando Santos’ men the belief to go for glory in Russia.
“Winning the Euros can be the breakthrough for Portugal and that we can go to the World Cup with a lot of confidence,” said Silva.
He became a Premier League champion in his first season at the Etihad after last summer’s £43million arrival from Monaco and is keen for the biggest trophy.
“It is important to have top players, but we have had very talented teams in the past who got very close to winning tournaments. I remember the disappointment we all felt when we hosted Euro 2004 and lost in the final. I also remember two years later, when we were beaten by France in the World Cup semi-finals. That was tough.
“So, to win Euro 2016 and finally lift a trophy was an important moment for Portuguese football.
“It lifted the curse. Maybe it was hard to play with the pressure of being called a Golden Generation. We have always had great players, but maybe you can’t be a Golden Generation unless you win a trophy.”
Portugal will be expected to come through a group that includes Spain, Morocco and Iran.
They open against their rivals from the Iberian peninsula in Sochi on Friday – when Silva will be pitting his skills against his City team-mate David Silva.
The Portuguese playmaker is seen as the man who will eventually replace the 32-year-old Spanish star in Pep Guardiola’s midfield.
But after getting a closeup view of the man that City fans call ‘Merlin’, he reckons that won’t be any time soon.
Silva said: “David is one of the best players in the world.
“He is 32 but he can play at least another four years at the top level – he looks in fantastic shape.
“David went through a tough time when his baby son was in hospital, but his performances were incredible. “I don’t think I am David’s replacement. We will keep playing together.”
Portugal and Spain’s only previous World Cup encounter was in 2010. Spain won 1-0 in the round of 16 thanks to a David Villa goal.