EXCLUSIVE: Zico compares his 1981 Flamengo team to the current side | OneFootball

This is part two of an extensive Onefootball exclusive interview with Zico. Click here to read part one.

Jorge Jesus’ desire to win impressed has impressed Zico, as he believes it’s one of the biggest things that has made the difference in Flamengo going from a great team to the best on the continent.

In fact, it is one of the characteristics that he says was also found in the legendary team of 1981.

“I don’t like to make comparisons, but I think the only similarity between us and them is the will to win… the will to conquer… the spirit of knowing what it is to wear the red and black shirt.

“We were never happy. We always wanted more. We were preparing for the victories and the achievements and I think that today’s team has that spirit too.”

When asked directly which team was better, Zico refused to give an answer, declaring it an impossible task.

“We didn’t have the infrastructure that players today have, the wonderful fields, you don’t waste time to dominate a game…

“You don’t have to guess if the ball will go left, right, if it will go up, or if it will come down.

“At that time, to play, you needed to be a ‘peleiro’. You had to be used to playing on the ground, on the cobblestone, playing with a wall, and with the curb.

“Anyone that didn’t know how to do it got confused and their game was complicated.

“The players [today] are good. They have a lot of quality but they play according to what football requires for them today.

“The material (that the uniforms were made out of) at the time, if it rained, you would leave the field with 3 kg more weight. It would soak.

“Even football boots, it was impossible for any player to get new football boots and go to training or go to the game. You had to send someone to soften them and, usually, we asked the kids to soften them.

“Today? No. You get a new boot and you’re already playing. So, how are you going to compare these times, with all these differences? It doesn’t make sense.”

Tomorrow we will bring you part three of our interview with the legendary Zico, where he will discuss which current players have impressed him the most so far.