Who is Kika Nazareth? Get to know the young Portuguese football star who broke Cristiano Ronaldo's World Cup record
Navigating life and pressure at BarcelonaAfter a productive stint at Benfica, Nazareth was rewarded with an offer from Barcelona in July 2024, where she was signed for a record €500,000 fee - the biggest in Portuguese women’s football history.The terms included four seasons with the Spanish giants, seeing Nazareth through to 2028.It sent shockwaves through the sport but also spoke to the prestigious side’s belief in the midfielder’s talent.For Nazareth, the headline-making transfer fee sparked mixed feelings. On the one hand came a weight of expectation, seeing every performance through the lens of money. But on the other hand, came a sense of belief.“If they paid this amount for me to be here, it's because they believe in me, it's because I have value. And I believe, I believe that I can eventually be worth this,” the Portuguese star told Forbes Portugal.“I also have to be able to change my way of thinking, I have to value myself, and that means recognising my quality.”Accepting Barcelona's investment in her, Nazareth has been rising to the challenge of the game in Spain.Up until her ankle injury in March of this year, the Portuguese prodigy had shown flashes of her potential. She scored three goals in 12 starts with three assists in the Liga F this season and bagged three goals and two assists in the Champions League.The step up in work ethic, she says, has been significant, but the special environment has balanced the challenge.“It's a different level. I remember that in the first training session I was like, 'What have I gotten myself into?’” Nazareth continued to Forbes Portugal on her initial experiences at Barcelona.“I'm not saying that there wasn't quality at Benfica, because there is a lot of quality, but, once again, without comparing, it's a different world. It's playing with the best, it's easy to play with them, they all think the same way."
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