DDuring this Friday’s press conference prior to next Monday’s match between Portugal and Slovenia, the Portuguese defender Pepe has been asked about the possibility of retiring from the national team once this Euro Cup is over, at 41 years old.. “I haven’t thought about it yet,” replied the defender, who, being a starter and essential in the first two games for Roberto Martínez, affirms that heHis secret to continuing to play is “the passion with which I play football.”
Surely, The veteran defender will start in the center of defense against Sloveniaand in view of this encounter he emphasizes that “I just have to think that in a little while I will get into the game, that is the most important thing for me. We have a very important game for us. For the players and for our country“.
The oldest player to play in a European Championship has not wanted to give any clues about his futureafter 17 years as an international, and 139 games in that time: “The secret is the passion with which I play football. I feel privileged to do what I like most., with a lot of competitive concentration, the love that I put into every training session, in every game. They joke with me because I’m always near the ice machine and the recovery machine. The physiotherapists say I own the machine…”
This Sunday, who ends his contract with Porto after five and a half seasons in this second stage, and three years between 2004 and 2007 before signing for Real Madrid, he assures that he has nothing in mind yet: “I don’t think about it too much. The future belongs to God. I have a lot of things to worry about today, how I’m going to defend my teammates in training, how I’m going to recover… Those are my worries,” he concluded.
