Psychological work helps Raphael Veiga reach the World Cup at his peak

Days before Palmeiras’ departure for the Club World Cup, in the United Arab Emirates, the club released a video clip of a song written by Abel Ferreira and sung by employees of the Football Academy.

“We will play to win. Each game is a final. Everyone defends and everyone attacks. With courage and mental strength”, read an excerpt of the lyrics, accompanied by a melody that gave a motivational tone to the song.

Each verse helped to reinforce a characteristic that the Portuguese coach seeks to emphasize in his work: care for the psychological health of everyone around him, including athletes, their assistants and other club employees. Aspect that won over players, such as Raphael Veiga, 26.

Since the arrival of the coach, the midfielder has seen his football evolve to become one of the most important pieces of the team. It was he, for example, who scored the first goal in the Libertadores final against Flamengo — with 5 goals in the competition, he was the second-highest scorer in Palmeiras, only behind Rony, who scored six.

“Besides the tactical part he [Abel] made me evolve, like understanding the way the team plays and looking for empty spaces on the field, at the same time it added a lot in the mental part”, says the midfielder, to leaf. “He usually says that the head controls our whole body, so he taught me that, being good with me and having the peace of mind to observe the spaces, I can make good plays for the team”.

In decisive moments, for example, it is common for the coach and his coaching staff to insist that everyone consult with Gisele Silva, the club’s psychologist, whose work is highly valued by the captain.

Veiga’s overall numbers for Palmeiras help attest to his improvement under Abel’s command. After spending a period on loan at Athletico, the player returned in early 2019. Until November 2020, when the Portuguese was hired, shirt 23 played 29 games as a starter and 27 as a reserve, scored 13 goals and provided two assists.

With Abel Ferreira, he has 70 games as a starter, only 10 as a reserve, has 25 goals scored and 10 assists. The player participated in four titles with the alviverde shirt: the Paulista (2020), the bi of Libertadores (2020 and 2021) and the Copa do Brasil (2021), the last three being the most important achievements, won during the management of the club. current technician.

Despite the poor campaign in the Club World Cup last year, in which Palmeiras finished fourth, Veiga values ​​the experience he had in Qatar and sees the squad more mature, especially for the achievements that the players have accumulated in recent years.

“For having lived this experience of the World Cup and for having played important matches, we will certainly go there with a much greater maturity”, he says.

According to the midfielder, despite the anxiety that the squad and fans are experiencing today, the preparation for this dispute was better than the previous one, mainly due to the calendar.

In 2021, the debut at the World Cup took place on February 7, just a week after the triumph over Santos in the Libertadores decision. In the exhausting season, greatly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, there were 77 games between Paulista, Brasileiro, Copa do Brasil, Libertadores and Mundial.

This time, after a vacation period, the team played only four games in the first rounds of the Paulista Championship, in which Abel was able to make the last adjustments to the team, undefeated so far, with victories over Novorizontino, Ponte Preta and Água Santa, in addition to a tie with São Bernardo.

“Furthermore, the people from Palmeiras set up a schedule for the trip so that we feel as little as possible the issue of the time zone”, highlights the player. The preparation, by the way, started during the flight that took the alviverde delegation, on Wednesday (2), in which everyone was instructed to sleep as soon as the plane took off to adjust the clock with the time of the United Arab Emirates.

For the cast, every detail can make a difference in the search for the unprecedented title. For shirt 23, the chance to return home with the trophy in his luggage would be “the icing on the cake that we’ve been preparing.”

In Veiga’s case, it would still have a special feeling. A Palmeiras fan since childhood, when he liked to frequent the stands, he fulfilled his grandfather’s dream by wearing the alviverde mantle, even after the death of the one who inspired him to be a player. The titles he has already won have gone beyond what his grandfather had dreamed of. But the athlete wants more.

“Winning the World Cup is really putting the name of each one here in the eternity of Palmeiras’ history. I’m very happy for this moment, I’m happy for what everyone is living. goal”, he concluded.