Every kid around the world who plays soccer wants to be Pele. I have a great responsibility to show them not just how to be like a soccer player, but how to be like a man.
PeleRead
A team is not made up of isolated individuals. Always stay in the game. Don't be passive. Football is a team game. No one plays alone. Success depends on your whole team being a single unit.
Interpretation
Teamwork is essential for success, as no one can achieve greatness alone.
This quote emphasizes the importance of teamwork, particularly in football, where collective effort is crucial for success. Pele highlights that individuals within a team must actively engage and work together, as the success of the whole depends on the unity and collaboration of all members, rather than on individual efforts alone.
In practice
In a motivational speech to encourage teamwork among colleagues.
Every kid around the world who plays soccer wants to be Pele. I have a great responsibility to show them not just how to be like a soccer player, but how to be like a man.
The more difficult the victory, the greater the happiness in winning.
No individual can win a game by himself.
I played for Santos at 16, and we had an excellent team, so it helped a lot. And then I played for Brazil at the Maracana against Argentina. So I get more experience. This was one year before the World Cup, and it made a lot of difference.
You must respect people and work hard to be in shape. And I used to train very hard. When the others players went to the beach after training, I was there kicking the ball.
I played futsal growing up in Baurd. In futsal you need to think quick and play quick so its easier for you when you move to normal football.
I knew at a young age, whether I was playing baseball or hockey or lacrosse, that my teammates were counting on me, whether it be to strike the last batter out in a baseball game or score a big goal in a hockey game.
Basketball is a great mystery. You can do everything right. You can have the perfect mix of talent and the best system of offense in the game. You can devise a foolproof defensive strategy and prepare your players for every possible eventuality. But if the players don’t have a sense of oneness as a group, your efforts won’t pay off. And the bond that unites a team can be so fragile, so elusive.
If I can help my teammate or teammates play at a level they've never played at before, then it doesn't even matter so much how I play.
Being a good teammate is when you try to sprint down a ball that everyone thinks is going out of bounds. But you go after it anyways and you get it.
To me, teamwork is the beauty of our sport, where you have five acting as one. You become selfless.
Five guys on the court working together can achieve more than five talented individuals who come and go as individuals.
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