Zico, the Egyptian national team player, revealed the difficult moments he experienced after exiting the World Cup against Argentina, confirming that he entered a crying fit that lasted for two hours, and he is still unable to forget that match, despite the state of pride he is living due to what the team achieved in the tournament.
Zico said, in statements to the "Al-Hekaya" program broadcast on MBC Egypt channel, that after the match he ate a small portion of food, then went up to his room and kept crying hysterically for two hours, and did not respond to his wife's calls until after that, before she confirmed to him that he should be proud of what he and his teammates achieved, and the level the team reached, noting that she was always his biggest supporter in his career.
He added that his wife stood by him in all stages and helped him a lot, confirming that she endured a lot with him since the beginning of his journey, and that he does not know how to thank her for what she has given him.
Zico explained that he is still living the details of the match against Argentina until now, confirming that he cannot get it out of his mind, and that he deals with those around him normally, but he is still affected by what happened from within, because the team was close to achieving a greater achievement.
He pointed out that everyone was celebrating the Egyptian national team despite exiting in the round of 16, confirming that he had never seen a team leave the tournament and receive such a massive fan reception, whether in the United States or after returning to Egypt, where he found fans welcoming him warmly in the streets and at the airport, expressing his thanks to the Egyptian fans for the support they gave the players throughout the tournament.
He revealed that his presence in the United States prevented him from grasping the scale of the reactions, but as soon as he returned to Egypt he personally felt the fans' joy, noting that people would stop him in the streets to express their happiness with what the team had presented.
Zico spoke about his celebration of his goal against Argentina, explaining that before every match he used to make a video call with his wife and son, and that his son would always say to him: "Papa John," which gave him a feeling of optimism, adding that he had promised him to celebrate in a certain way if he scored, and he fulfilled his promise after scoring the goal.
The Egyptian national team player confirmed that the match against Argentina gave him global fame, and that his video clips achieved huge views, but he wished that would be coupled with the team's qualification to the next round, because this generation deserves to reach a greater status.
Zico concluded his statements by affirming his confidence in the Egyptian national team's capabilities, describing the current generation as a "golden and historic generation," stressing that the team has the ingredients to compete for the Africa Cup of Nations title, reach the semifinals in the World Cup, and even compete for the title in the future.
