[Harvey Specter]

A nice write up in the Sun today of one my close friends. I actually got another autograph Cristiano Ronaldo jersey in the mail 2 days ago from him, I've asked him for game worn shoes or a game worn jersey but doubt I'll get that.

VANCOUVER — Daniel Fernandes remembers kicking a soccer ball on the streets of east Vancouver with friends on warm summer evenings.

He remembers snowboarding on Mount Seymour, playing basketball, volleyball, roller hockey and rugby.

There was just about no sport that the 26-year-old didn’t try.

But the Portuguese-Canadian settled on soccer because it wasn’t as dangerous as sports like snowboarding and because of his love of Europe which has close ties to the game.

Now, as third goalkeeper on the Portuguese national team at the FIFA World Cup soccer tournament in South Africa, the Vancouver native wants to say thank you to the people who supported and motivated him before he crossed the ocean at age 17 to join the youth system in Portugal.

“For me, being a Canadian-Portuguese means so much to me,” he said over a crackling phone line from South Africa while huddled with teammates in advance of Tuesday’s big game against Spain. “To all the people who supported me in Vancouver, to all the people I know and to even the people who don’t know me but have followed me, I would like to send my heart.”

He knows that his Portuguese father Antonio, a construction worker, and his Czech mother Brenda, a nurse, are watching the games back in Vancouver with his brother Tony.

His other brother Nelson is in South Africa with him along with a best friend.

As the third goalkeeper, Fernandes, who played very briefly with the Vancouver Whitecaps, knows his chances of getting on the field at the World Cup are slim, but he isn’t frustrated by this.

“Frustration isn’t something in a top athlete’s mind. You should be positive and motivated,” he said. “You have got to be ready at any second. You have to train at the highest level.”

Being part of the FIFA tournament in South Africa has already provided many memorable moments. Playing against the five-time champions Brazil, which resulted in a 0-0 draw, was near the top.

“As a kid, I always watched Brazil-Portugal games. That really stuck in my head as I realized here I was at the World Cup. It was beautiful.”

He has also got to know Cristiano Ronaldo, the Portuguese team captain, soccer heartthrob and the game’s highest-paid player.

Ronaldo, who has yet to shine at this World Cup, scored 26 goals in 29 matches for Real Madrid this season, but has only a late strike in Portugal’s 7-0 rout of North Korea.

“He loves what he does and I respect that,” said Fernandes. “He (sets) a good example on the field and even off the field.”

Fernandes says he loves Canada and Portugal equally. He hopes that one day he will see a World Cup soccer tournament in Canada.

But for now, he is thinking of only one thing — a big win against Spain.

“We don’t want any ifs on the Portuguese national team. We have to be our best.”

Vancouver Sun

yzacharias@vancouversun.com

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun


Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/V...#ixzz0sEzgKmTi