EXCLUSIVE: Ederson on Brazil's World Cup hopes and the difference between Pep and Ancelotti

[p][b]"The first to believe have to be the players; if the player doesn't believe, forget it[/b]," he said.[/p][p]Currently playing for [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/fenerbahce/MsbmracL/"]Fenerbahce[/a], [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/ederson/UDODA71I/"]Ederson[/a] also said that Turkish football fans remind him of those at [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/corinthians/QBGfQbSe/"]Corinthians[/a] and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/vasco/2RABlYFn/"]Vasco[/a], compared the work of [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/ancelotti-carlo/nZQG5IgJ/"]Ancelotti[/a] and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/guardiola-pep/hxNijWrJ/"]Pep Guardiola[/a], and recalled the fundamental advice he received from former goalkeeper Julio Cesar at the start of his career.[/p][p]The interview with Ederson took place on Sunday, March 29th, from the Selecao's camp in Florida, where the team [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/brazil-I9l9aqLq/croatia-K8aznggo/?mid=A3LetXFE"]will face Croatia[/a] in the second friendly on the international break. Check out the full interview below.[/p][image alt="Ederson beaten by Mbappé in friendly against France" id="205aeb3d-99da-42e3-9ac4-8035c1d16cd3" credit-line="Reuters" guid="03983f1a-cb4a-43b4-9bcc-791ee660c5b8" original-width="3964" original-height="2732" /][p][b]What is going through your mind so close to the World Cup?[/b][/p][p]"Quiet. There are only two months to go, and we still have many, many things to do because of our process. But we've been implementing it in training, trying to mesh as quickly as possible, to absorb what the coach asks of us, right?[/p][p]"Because our process started late. So I hope that during the real competition, we can put into practice what we've been training and practising."[/p][p][b]What makes you believe that Brazil can be world champions?[/b][/p][p]"Everything, man, everything. We have quality, we have potential. Of course, there's still a bit of work to be done to get all the ideas the coach wants involved, for us to play well and show good football. But the players have to be the first to believe, because if the players don't believe, forget it."[/p][p][b]This is your third World Cup cycle. Have you changed a lot since then?[/b][/p][p]"Yes, yes, a lot has changed. Now I'm more experienced, more seasoned. So you start to see things differently. Of course, when this period comes, it generates a bit more anxiety among the players.[/p][p]"Players give it their all, but they're always afraid of getting a serious injury and missing out on the World Cup as a result, so it's all about dedicating yourself as much as possible during training and matches and doing treatments, extra-camp work, extra-activity, which is very important."[/p][embed guid="7b3606a3-719a-4d0c-947d-5d759aec48b2" url="https://x.com/CBF_Futebol/status/2037290268538413428" social-type="twitter" /][p][b]There will be almost 50 days together in the World Cup camp. How important is it to know the character of each player?[/b][/p][p]"That's very easy. I know 99% of the players who are here today. Some come for the first time, but the recent arrivals we bring closer to us, so they feel more at ease, so they don't get so nervous.[/p][p]"We end up playing games with them, everything, trying to bring them closer to us, to make them feel as if it wasn't their first time, making them feel more at ease... that way they perform better in training and, consequently, in the game."[/p][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/rodriguez-thiago/MmJb4MzQ/"]Igor Thiago[/a] is fighting for the top scorer in the Premier League with your former teammate, Haaland. And [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/rayan/CSiH3dM4/"]Rayan[/a] has just arrived at [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/bournemouth/OtpNdwrc/"]Bournemouth[/a]. How much can the English league add to a player of this calibre?[/b][/p][p]"It adds a lot because the Premier League is very intense football. There are a lot of young players who arrive there who need time to adapt, and you see Rayan playing very well, playing some great games; you see that he has adapted very quickly.[/p][p]"He didn't need that process or that time to adapt. Igor Thiago has also scored a lot of goals. I think they're two young lads, Igor Thiago looks about 40, but he's still a kid. So I think they both have a bright future ahead of them, which I'm sure the national team will enjoy very much."[/p][p][b]You've had the opportunity to work with Guardiola and Ancelotti. What's it like working day-to-day with these two guys? Are they very different?[/b][/p][p]"Oh yes, they have different personalities, don't they? Ancelotti is more relaxed, Guardiola is more intense, but they are still two great coaches, and I was privileged to be able to work with them."[/p][image alt="Ancelotti to lead Brazil at the 2026 World Cup" id="2ea545e6-54e8-40d3-8097-cad6fa738602" credit-line="CBF" guid="333b1d7a-87ad-4131-b6aa-40729824ed8c" original-width="2568" original-height="1721" /][p][b]Ancelotti is more of a talker, perhaps?[/b][/p][p]"Ancelotti talks to everyone, he talks to players in private. I think that's a normal thing for all coaches to do with their players. And Ancelotti, with his name, passing on all his experience to us too, that's very positive."[/p][p][b]Do you bring anything from the Premier League, from Pep's work, to your day-to-day life with the national team? Playing with your feet, for example. Do you still carry some of that with you, or has it been left behind by the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/manchester-city/Wtn9Stg0/"]Manchester City[/a] team?[/b][/p][p]"No, it depends a lot on the circumstances, the way Ancelotti wants us to play. If he has to use me when I'm playing with my feet, I'll know.[/p][p]"Although in the last game I had three bad outings there, but that's part of football. It's normal, but whatever I have to do with what I had at City, with the national team, I'll do."[/p][image alt="Ederson goes to his 3rd World Cup" id="a82cabae-64af-4617-85db-1bde7c887239" credit-line="CBF" guid="91d3de71-71c6-4c30-91cb-8604e5595679" original-width="1600" original-height="1067" /][p][b]Do you feel that your time is coming in the national team?[/b][/p][p]"Hmmm, I don't know. I try to work as if my moment were tomorrow. So, regardless of whether I play or not, I've always prepared myself in the same way, because the opportunity comes when you least expect it, right? So you have to be prepared."[/p][p][b]What's it like playing in Turkey now? Have you had a chance to chat to Taffarel about local football and rivalries?[/b][/p][p]"Yeah, yeah, football is crazy there. But Turkey is a very good country, its people are fanatical about sport, not just football. So it's a bit reminiscent of Brazil there, a bit reminiscent of Corinthians, the fans of Corinthians, Vasco, [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/flamengo-rj/WjxY29qB/"]Flamengo[/a], the most fanatical fans who chant for the whole ninety minutes.[/p][p]"But what's really reminiscent is the Corinthians and Vasco fans, the people there are fanatical, they play along with the team, they suffer along with the team. It's very different to what I was used to in England, isn't it? There, people live the game more than in England."[/p][image alt="Ederson and Casemiro: two of the most experienced players in the national team" id="a408a461-0509-4d3e-bfa4-58be80203618" credit-line="CBF" guid="ea87283a-d403-4a61-854e-78c59af572f7" original-width="1600" original-height="1067" /][p][b]In Brazil, we find it hard to reconcile passion with reason when it comes to talking about football, don't you think?[/b][/p][p]"Yeah, it's the same in Turkey. Sometimes they talk a lot out of emotion, too; they write comments out of emotion, they send messages out of emotion, but that's normal, it's a fan thing. Fans always want to win, right?[/p][p]"Fans don't have that mentality of a player who has given his all and sometimes ends up drawing a game or losing, they don't know how to differentiate between those terms."[/p][p][b]Do you feel that the national team is like that too?[/b][/p][p]"It's like that everywhere. Fans always want to win and see the team play well, but that's not always the case, is it? Some of us players understand, but the vast majority don't."[/p][p][b]How is your final stretch of the season in Turkey? And in the Premier League, who do you think will win the title?[/b][/p][p]"It's going well in Turkey. We're second in the league, but everything is open. We're going to fight until the last matchday, believing that it's possible. And in the Premier League it's "Cityzao", right, always. Forget it. City's final stretch is different to the other teams there, that's for sure."[/p][p][b]Do you think that, with two friendlies before the World Cup, three games in the group stage, maybe the team will pick up the pace there?[/b][/p][p]"Oh, absolutely. The whole team, together. You'll have a longer period of preparation, so it'll be different, because here (in the friendlies in March) you end up having two, three days of training and then there's a game and then another two, three days of further preparation and another game.[/p][p]"So I think it's a bit more difficult for us to absorb all the ideas Ancelotti wants to implement."[/p][embed guid="bb0c13d1-9b26-463d-8865-e2fb4892950a" url="https://x.com/ManCityPT/status/1962772892048875570" social-type="twitter" /][p][b]Did you get to know Mikel Arteta during your career? What was it like exchanging experiences with him?[/b][/p][p]"It was very good. Arteta is a very intelligent guy, he's young. He has a lot of potential to be a great coach.[/p][p]"At City he helped the strikers a lot, he did a lot of work on finishing and in training, when a player was missing - either through injury or as a substitute - he always played and, well, he played his socks off."[/p][p][b]When you arrived at Benfica, Julio Cesar was the first-choice goalkeeper, right? What did you learn from him?[/b][/p][p]"Yes, 10 years ago. If I'm not mistaken, 11 or 12. Julio is a guy who taught me a lot. Not just in football, but outside of football. He always gave me advice about investing my money when I started earning good money, reinvesting it, knowing what to do with the money because... Just as money comes, it goes if you don't have your head on straight.[/p][p]"He helped me, taught me how to invest money, so I learnt a lot of positive things from Julio. Julio was a key figure in my process, not just on the pitch, but off it too. He's a spectacular guy and he helped me a lot."[/p][p][b]Are there any other names that have been important in your journey in professional football?[/b][/p][p]"I didn't come into contact with him playing, but Rogerio Ceni, who is my idol, right? I didn't know him, but he is, he's my idol for the history he built at Sao Paulo, for everything, for all the love and dedication he had over all these years and for the titles he won.[/p][p]"And Julio, who was a spectacular goalkeeper and who I spent two years with, because he's a guy off the beaten track. Julio is a partner of mine, so it's these two guys, but mainly Julio, because I've lived with him, I know him and I know his character."[/p][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/brazil/I9l9aqLq/"]Check out Brazil's fixtures on Flashscore[/a][/b][/p]