You don’t need to be an expert in body language to see that Vendito is not the most comfortable footballer around when it comes to being interviewed: her answers are short, her legs are restless and her eyes paint a picture of her shyness.
But the Brazilian striker is a different person in front of goal, After two rounds of matches at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Colombia 2024™, no player can surpass her staggering four-goal tally.
“Well, out on the pitch you have to be [fearless],” she said after scoring twice in the 3-0 win over France on Tuesday. “We have to be lionesses, to do our job with no fear of our opponents. I am actually very shy off the pitch, but we work on the mental side of the game and that helps us to play our best football on the pitch.”
While the forward is more reserved off the field, her coach Rosana admitted it doesn’t affect her performances.
“Vendito is an introvert,” the coach said. “But she is someone who displays great focus and interest in what she is doing. The pitch is her natural habitat – she moves and puts chances away really well. She feels very comfortable there.”
Part of this is down to the psychological work that A Seleção do behind the scenes, as Rosana explained. But with that being said, Vendito deserves the bulk of the credit.
“We do a lot of work away from the pitch on the psychology of the game, looking at specific dynamics to help the players be more focused and relaxed in big moments,” Rosana added. “The results of our psychological work have been exceptional. Our backroom staff do a great job with this but credit must also go to Vendito. She is a very focused player.”
Two of Vendito’s four goals in the opening pair of games have been eye-catching finishes, namely the volley in Brazil’s 9-0 thrashing of Fiji and the exquisite back-heel flick in the 3-0 victory over France.
“As all good centre-forwards do, I use any means necessary at any given moment to improvise and get the ball into the back of the net,” the forward said. “I will keep working hard to try and put away chances.”
With two wins and two clean sheets so far, Brazil are assured of their knockout-stage place, but who they will face depends on their final result against second-placed Canada in a mouth-watering Bogota bout on Friday.
