Football is an associative game. Any player who’s more than mediocre knows it.
You have to trust your teammates. You deliver the ball and move into space to create openings. The runs you make and the balls your teammates pass are what build chances, both in attack and in defense.
It doesn’t matter what your teammate believes, where they were born, how they vote, or the color of their skin. If they are better placed than you to help the team, you make the pass and offer the team a chance to do better.
I realized this on a hot afternoon in Brazil, years ago. During a challenging game, I controlled the ball well after retrieving it in midfield, and I faced two sudden options. The goal was ahead of me, but twenty-five meters, two defenders, and a goalkeeper stood in the way. I could take the chance, but then I saw Carlos. Although he had never been a skilled player, he was running nicely into the box, slipping down the right side of the defense. A well-placed pass would put him in the position to shoot. The ball only needed to reach him accurately so he could take an immediate shot, leaving little margin for error—something he was fully capable of executing.
That evening, I reflected on how a society would thrive if we thought collectively, like a team sport, and cooperated with the understanding that nothing could be more important than the common good.
I completed that pass with care, and Carlos scored—against all odds. As we celebrated, a wall of teammates brought us to the ground in joy. At that moment, all the world’s problems seemed resolved. Life felt magical.
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