The goalkeeper had spent his entire career with Sporting CP, claiming five titles, but enjoyed his greatest hour when representing his country. The stopper put in a memorable performance as Portugal lifted the European Championship trophy in 2016 – the country’s greatest footballing honour, with Patrício an integral part.
THROWN IN THE DEEP END
Marítimo 0-1 Sporting CP | 19th November 2006
I have great memories of my debut. It was in Madeira against Marítimo. It was an unforgettable day for me. It was a debut for my own club. It was an away game but with my home club Sporting. To debut at 18 was unforgettable and very important. I’ll remember that day for the rest of my life.
FIRST SILVERWARE
Porto 0-2 Sporting CP | 18th May 2008
My first piece of silverware came in the Portuguese Cup against Porto and it was a fantastic final. It was a great game and was without a doubt unforgettable because it was so difficult. We won in extra time, so it was a great occasion.
REACHING A MAJOR INTERNATIONAL TOURNAMENT FINAL
Portugal 2-0 Wales | 6th July 2016
In the semi-finals we faced Wales and won 2-0. It was a tough match. Semi-finals are always tough, nerve-wracking games, because a place in the final is on the line. It was a good match, we played very well and were the better side. We’d put ourselves in a position that meant we were so close to winning and we ultimately did so, and it was most certainly a wonderful moment for us.
EURO 2016 GLORY
Portugal 1-0 France | 10th July 2016
After all of our work on the training ground, the time we had put in, to then get the opportunity to lift the trophy was the chance to conquer what we had been dreaming of and it was really great. It was a great final, as we were already in good spirits and we believed throughout the whole game that we could win. It turned out the way it did, and we were able to win the match after putting in a lot of effort and hard work, just as we did in all of our matches.
PERSONAL ACCOLADES AND TEAM OF THE TOURNAMENT
European Championships | 2016
It was marvelous to have achieved it, to have done something for Portugal and to have received recognition. I don’t like to focus things too much on an individual level. We’re a team and the team only does well when the individuals perform and when they do what the coach has planned for the good of the team. So, the most important thing is what we were able to achieve together.
