ZRoberto speaks without a filter. The 51-year-old Brazilian looked back on his time as a professional footballer, recalling his time at Real Madrid where bad habits affected his performance, and the disappointment of missing out on the 2002 World Cup. This is the story of how failure taught him to regain consistency and maintain it to this day. “Today I’m more disciplined than Cristiano Ronaldo,” he told Globo’s Abre Aspas.
Zé was always an ordinary boy, but thanks to his mother’s urging and his talent, he came to Madrid. However, the Brazilian admitted that he did not make the most of the opportunity, saying: “My video game addiction affected my performance.” Sleepless nights and neglectful eating habits took a toll on his game. “I ate a lot of cookies, and when I finished one box, I was eating the next one. Before I knew it, I had gained weight,” she said honestly.
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I was eating a lot of cookies, and when I finished one box I started eating the next one.
The former player admits that arriving in Madrid was by no means easy. He arrived at one of the world’s best clubs physically and mentally unprepared. He was surrounded by luxury cars and teammates wearing perfect suits. He wears simple clothes. “Roberto Carlos joked that people would think he went to paint the dressing room,” he recalled with humor.
learn from mistakes
But where many would have given up, Zé Roberto continued. One example of this was when he was not called up for the 2002 World Cup. “I was disappointed. I didn’t even watch the World Cup,” he confessed. However, he did not give up and fought for a call-up to the next tournament. Thanks to his past failures, he has honed his discipline, and at age 51, he still has a steady job and remains in great shape.
