Pico’s mother ‘couldn’t be more proud’, says Cape Verde ‘made Argentina look very average’

Roberto 'Pico' Lopes' mother, Judy, declared she "couldn't be more proud" of her son and the Cape Verdean soccer team after their valiant World Cup performance against Argentina. The team, in their first-ever World Cup appearance, pushed the 2022 champions to the brink, ultimately losing 3-2 in extra time due to an own goal.

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couldn’t be more proud

Lopes, a captain for Shamrock Rovers in Dublin and son of a Cape Verdean father, played the full 120 minutes, directly competing against Lionel Messi. His mother emphasized the team's "tremendous" performance, stating they "gave everything that they could" and "didn't leave anything on the pitch." She believed Cape Verde could have forced penalties with a few more minutes and highlighted the team's "great character and resilience" in coming back from behind twice.

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disappointed with the result, not the performance

"I think Argentina were lucky to go through in the end," Judy Lopes told RTÉ Radio 1, adding that her son's team "played with passion and desire" and "made Argentina look very average." She described the recent weeks as a "fairytale" but noted that Pico's success was not sudden, citing his decade of consistent high-level play in Europe.

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tremendous

The support for the team in Ireland, particularly in Lopes' hometown of Crumlin, has been immense, with comparisons drawn to the national team's 1990 World Cup run. Calls for a public homecoming event in Dublin are growing, with the Irish Minister of State for Sport indicating the government would discuss a potential ceremony with Dublin City Council. Lopes was lauded as "phenomenal" throughout the tournament, even after captaining Shamrock Rovers to a league and cup double last year.

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gave everything that they could