Sports Poets Society

Head coach wants to ease the burden on Real Madrid forward Vinícius Júnior and end the Seleção’s long wait for World Cup glory "It doesn’t matter if people say I am not a good tactician.  All I can say is I know the game well" "I see Vinícius as a person who can win a match on his own.  But we can’t focus on just one player" 13 May 2026 - The Guardian Thiago Rabelo Is Carlo Ancelotti an ambitious man? The Italian leans back and smiles. “Me? I’m not ambitious. Why? Why are you asking that?” The reason for the question is simple: the 66-year-old is one of the most successful managers ever, with five Champions League wins and league titles in England, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. But he still wants more. Last May he was appointed Brazil head coach with one objective: to win the World Cup. “I’m not obsessed with winning,” Ancelotti says. “What I have is a passion for enjoying the moments that football has given me. I’m not obsessed with winning the World Cup, but I...

Brazilian midfielder Léo Scienza endured depression and hard times to finally be thriving with Southampton ‘Friends ask me if I dream of playing for Brazil.  That’s crazy, but in a good way. It’s not reality’ 23 Jan 2026 - The Guardian Thiago Rabelo Seven years ago Léo Scienza’s life broke into a thousand pieces. On his 20th birthday his father died and the young footballer locked himself in his room for two months, having lost the will to live . “You know when everything is bad and nothing makes sense any more?” the Southampton midfielder says. “My life had no meaning any more. “Everyone has a dark side and I’m not the best person to talk about depression or what depression is. In fact, I only understood it later. My father died on my birthday – that will always be marked in my life. After he died I just wanted to stay in my dark room doing nothing. I didn’t want to see anyone, I didn’t want to talk to anyone.” The Brazilian can talk about it now but it is clear it remains a haunt...