Cunha ‘proud’ to be praised by Dorival

Wolverhampton midfielder Matheus Cunha said on Tuesday he will try to use Brazil's World Cup qualifiers against Colombia and Argentina to justify the praise he received from Brazil coach Dorival Junior for the best moment of his career.

"I was proud of his words. Being praised by the coach makes you happier and more confident. I'm going to try to meet all those expectations and praise on the pitch wearing the national team shirt," said the player in statements published on the website of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF).

In announcing him as one of his call-ups, the coach said Matheus Cunha has been standing out for his consistency and good form. "All the observations we made were very positive in terms of his performance and his behaviour," he said.

In fact, the Brazilian is currently enjoying the best season of his career as he has 15 goals and four assists in his last 29 games for Wolverhampton. "I'm happy to be back in the national team at a time when I'm showing at my club a lot of happiness and very well played football," he said.

Matheus Cunha, who has made eleven appearances for Brazil, has not been called up since October 2023, when he played in the qualifiers against Venezuela and Uruguay. The midfielder said he returns to the Canarinha more mature, lighter and aware after having absorbed various cultures at the different clubs he played for in Europe.

He also said it will be especially exciting to play in front of the Brazilian fans because he left Brazil at a very young age and never played matches in the country as a professional for a local club.