Ex-Man United boss reveals he's a fan of Flamengo idol Zico | OneFootball

Erik ten Hag mentioned that he followed the 1982 World Cup in Spain

Zico is one of the greatest players in the history of Brazilian and world football, and proof of this is that coach Erik ten Hag, former Manchester United (ENG) manager, revealed himself to be a fan of the ‘Galinho’. In an interview, the current Bayer Leverkusen (GER) boss highlighted that he followed Brazil in the 1982 World Cup, led by the former Flamengo player.

— I have a great video of the Dutch national team facing Brazil at the 1974 World Cup in Germany. That was my first experience with Brazilian football. But the Brazilian team I liked the most was the one from 1982 — began Erik ten Hag, this Saturday (30).

— They didn’t win the World Cup, but they had incredible players like Sócrates, Falcão, and especially my favorite, Zico. It’s a shame he played so little time in Europe, only at Udinese, and didn’t win a World Cup with Brazil — concluded the current Bayer Leverkusen coach.

HOW DID ZICO DO IN THE 1982 WORLD CUP?

Zico scored two goals for Brazil in the first stage of the 1982 World Cup. Later, the then Flamengo player found the net against Italy in the second knockout stage. However, the Brazilian National Team ended up eliminated, and the title went to Italy, who defeated Germany.

HAS ERIK TEN HAG EVER FACED FLAMENGO?

Erik ten Hag and Bayer Leverkusen faced Flamengo. On that occasion, the Dutch coach was in Rio de Janeiro for a pre-season friendly against the under-20 rubro-negro team. Thus, o Mais Querido steamrolled and won 5-1, in a match played at Gávea.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.