Martim Costa: “We want Portugal’s best-ever finish — and we’re dreaming of more”
Speaking to Handball Planet, one of the key figures of the Portuguese national team, Martim Costa, highlighted that the squad is entering the upcoming European Championship with great confidence and a clear goal to continue the team’s strong recent run at major tournaments. (!)
Portugal’s primary objective in Group B will be to secure victories against Romania and North Macedonia in Herning, with the final match against Denmark potentially deciding their maximum standing in the group. (!)
The Sporting Lisbon left back emphasized that Portugal is in a good moment both individually and collectively, and the team wants to show all the quality it possesses, aiming to finish among the top five teams in the tournament. (!)
According to Costa, ambitions are high, but the focus remains on fighting spirit and unity, which strongly characterize this squad. (!)
When asked how he feels ahead of the championship, he said:
“I feel quite excited — it will be fun to play at this European Championship with my teammates, and it’s a fantastic feeling to have the opportunity to play with them. We want to surpass our previous European Championship result and finish at least in the top five, but we know it won’t be easy.” (!)
Costa acknowledged that Portugal faces a tough group and a challenging second phase, but the team is focused on each match with the goal of winning and seeing if that will be enough to improve their result. (!)
He also reflected on the pressure from media and fans following Portugal’s strong showing at the last World Championship:
“When you are the fourth-best team in the world, everyone expects a lot more. We like that pressure because we enjoy playing under those conditions, we love full arenas with many fans, and we know many are watching us and expecting victory. But as I said — match by match, win by win, we’ll see where we end up.”
