Cubillas wants his dream final: “Portugal-Argentina, perfect” | OneFootball

An emblematic figure of the World Cups and an FC Porto legend, Teófilo Cubillas is one of the biggest names in football to flourish in the United States between the 1970s and 1980s, in a league, the NASL, that brought together some of the greatest stars on the international stage. The Peruvian, one of the brightest foreigners in the dragons’ history and a true goalscorer, built the most remarkable part of his career in Fort Lauderdale, just a few kilometres from Miami, between 1979 and 1983, a city he still calls home.

Now 77, Cubillas still has the same warmth and friendliness as always, without hiding how much he misses Portugal, even though he recently visited the blue-and-white club’s museum. He was a FIFA guest at Brazil-Scotland and was present again, this time at Portugal-Colombia. “I’m very fascinated by this World Cup, seeing such a great atmosphere and hoping to watch as many matches as possible, with the wish that we may all be lucky enough to enjoy great spectacles,” said the Peruvian, who shone at the 1970, 1978 and 1982 World Cups. He scored ten goals, with several works of art among them, five in 1970 and another five in 1978, winning over football fans and establishing himself as the greatest Peruvian of all time. Ronaldo matched Cubillas with his two goals against Uzbekistan.

Cubillas goes back in time to explain how he settled in Miami and never left this bright path behind. Today’s times have put football centre stage in the city, thanks to the work of a kind of God. “I’ve been in Miami since 1979 and the city has grown a lot in its connection to football. Messi changed a lot here, interest has grown, the stadiums are full and people are enjoying it,” he says, praising the figures making headlines in the tournament, while continuing to pay close attention to the impact of this competition, marked by Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo saying farewell to major tournaments. “I’m very curious, and many people are for the same reason. We have Messi and Ronaldo, one on each side. It seems to me they arrived well prepared, they’re in great shape. Honestly, I think whichever of the two is more consistent, without ups and downs, can take his national team to something big and wonderful. A final between Portugal and Argentina would be a perfect scenario,” says Cubillas. Now far removed from the ease of identifying most Portuguese players, Cubillas sums up what he knows and feels about the World Cup. “Portugal always produces a lot of talent, good players who reach Europe’s biggest clubs. It’s a country that is dear to me because of what I lived at FC Porto. They were great emotions, and I know very well the affection I earned. It was spectacular to feel FC Porto again on this latest visit,” he adds.

Used to spending a great deal of time with Colombians, Cubillas approaches this match as a duel of enormous intensity and importance. “They are two national teams I love and that interest me greatly, both with enormous potential in this tournament. It was a beautiful match between one team I follow because of Ronaldo and my connection to FC Porto and another with which I am very close, and which is representing our region very well. Both teams left me with incredible impressions,” he concluded.

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