TICKETS
There are times when Paula Valencia still can’t believe it. Last March, the goalkeeper played a big role in securing Colombia a spot at the first FIFA Futsal Women’s World Cup™, which will take place in the Philippines. Even thinking about traveling to the other side of the planet for the tournament brings about a warm smile and chuckle to her face.
Colombia topped Paraguay 4-1 in the third-place play-off at the Copa America to book their place at the global showpiece, where they have been drawn into Group B with European powerhouse Spain, Canada and Thailand. An uphill task awaits for the South Americans to try and reach the knockout phase, but with the likes of rising star Nicole Mancilla and the wizardry of Merlin Salcedo, Valencia tells FIFA that a unified and battle-tested Colombia fancy their chances of making a lot of noise.
Paula Valencia: When the match started it was stressful because we were playing for a spot in the first World Cup, so we entered the game with that burden, but later we began to loosen up. We started off losing but we always had trust in the talent we have and the preparation we had done since the start of the year. In the end the result went our way.
We were there with our coaches crying, laughing. The tournament took place in Brazil but there were Colombians who came to watch us and they celebrated with us, brought flags. We were so happy to be with our families or call our loved ones who were far away.
I think all the players on the national team have been getting better thanks to the training camps that the federation have allowed us to have. It’s been really important for the team. When the news came out that the Copa America was going to serve as qualifying for the World Cup, the federation went all in. They gave us a lot of camps that we started in January, and little by little, all the mini-camps, along with the physical and tactical preparation from the coaching staff, allowed us to reach our best level and qualify for the World Cup.
I think the biggest team in our group are Spain, who have a professional league, the best futsal league in the world. We know that Thailand and Canada also have their own star players like us, so each match will be a final.
We really don’t look at the individuals but more the team as a whole. This is a sport in which four sub in and four sub out at a time, and all of the players are game-changers, so we can’t just focus on one single player. We know that Spain’s best players are going to go because it’s a World Cup, so they are all going to be good. We’re focused on them as a unit and where they can do damage to us.
Our coach, Roberto Bruno, has always placed a lot of emphasis on first worrying about ourselves and what Colombia has to give tactically and physically. We’re a team that has remained intact more or less, with 90 per cent of the players since the first mini-camp. I think one of the keys is that Colombia always take to the court with the desire to win. We’re training very hard, we have players who are coming in at a high level because they have been playing all the time, and we have great technical talent on an individual level that can then carry out the tactical part of the game.
My personal opinion is that our direct rivals in the group are Canada and Thailand. We know that Spain have one of the best leagues in the world and have a great history, so they are likely to qualify, so our direct rivals will be the other two. We know that they have their strengths. We have to have knowledge on how to stop them. Our coaches have the videos prepared for us to study in our next camp, and their team talks will more or less decide how we will face those teams.
The DNA of all Colombia teams, not just in futsal but in all categories, is that Colombia alway go out to win, so we are preparing ourselves for that. I’m a firm believer in God and that God shows the way every day. We just have to work on our mindset to prepare ourselves to try and go as far as possible.
She is already a star in futsal and one of the best players in South America. In fact, I saw her last night in training and she’s just as motivated as everyone else. She’s a player with unique characteristics: power, resilience and an inner strength that sets her apart. She never gives up. We saw that in the Copa America. She gave her all for the national team. For me, today Nicole Mancilla is one of the best players in the world, and she’s here to do incredible things in this sport.
I follow Bianca a lot, she’s my role model. We have faced each other a lot in the Copa Libertadores. To compete so much against her in Copa Libertadores, and several times against the Brazilian national team – and that she has won the Best Women’s Goalkeeper award – gives me the hope that I can also be the best goalkeeper in the world one day.
For me it’s a dream come true. When you’re little, the biggest dream you can have in any sport is to represent your country. Apart from the big responsibility of playing in goal and trying to keep a clean sheet, I also feel a happiness and immense pride at being able to go to a World Cup wearing the colours of my country’s flag. I imagine I’ll cry hearing our national anthem in the Philippines.
It’s so beautiful to form part of my country’s history, that this group of warriors and coaching staff are the first ones. We are starting this path and opening the way by going to the first World Cup that FIFA is organising. As an athlete, you always want to open the way for future generations, for the girls who are in school right now and who just started this sport and say that they want to be like Merlin or Mancilla or Paula Valencia, and maybe one day have professional careers in futsal.
📸 Photos courtesy of the Federacion Colombiana de Futbol
