André Silva Rekindles National Team Hopes with Jesus: "Why Not?"

One of FC Porto's new faces for the 2026/27 season, André Silva, who sealed his return to the blue and white club nine years later, is keeping his hopes alive of representing Portugal once more. This is especially true now that Jorge Jesus has taken over as national team coach, succeeding Roberto Martínez.

"Initially, it felt a bit strange [being absent from call-ups for so long], but it's normal because in recent seasons I wasn't at my best, or the context didn't allow for it in terms of numbers. I respect the coaches, who are our leaders, the captains of the ships, and each one has their own ideas to bring the best to the club or national teams," emphasized the 30-year-old striker in an interview with Sport TV.

"With coach Martínez, we only had one moment together, when he arrived. After that, there was no further conversation. There was always an expectation, and I was always ready to try and give my best for it to work out, but it was an expectation I knew I couldn't fully control. I remained calm, waiting for the moment and respecting the situation," added the forward, who has 19 goals in 53 senior international caps and hasn't worn the 'Quinas' jersey since the 1-2 loss to South Korea in the group stage of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

When asked if he believes he could be called up by Jorge Jesus, André Silva was emphatic: "Yes, why not? It continues to be a dream for me to represent the national team. I feel like I just stopped going yesterday; that is, I have the feeling that I'm part of the setup, and I have the same desire and the same dream to represent Portugal now and in future competitions. It has always been my mission and will continue to be as long as I'm at my best."

"That fills us with confidence. At that moment, I was on a trajectory where I went from being a kid to playing with Cristiano, who was my idol. Playing alongside him gave me an emotion and energy beyond the average. I ran for the team, helped him, and I also felt that by doing so, I created many opportunities for him to score. At the same time, I felt he also wanted and was happy for me to start scoring for the national team."

"It wasn't words or expressions; it was attitudes or glances. In football, during a game, we can read, look, and see expressions. And I remember an important moment in my first goal, where I saw in Cristiano's expression the feeling that he wanted or was waiting for me to score. I don't know if it was my interpretation, but you end up feeling it. Yes, the empathy existed and was also made public by Cristiano himself."

"Of course, I always had a lot of confidence, given the quality we have, but it's much easier to talk about past speculations after the results. The quality we possess is undeniable. Looking at the champions or the four finalists, I think as a group we could have done more, from an outside perspective. It's easier to talk from the outside, but comparing our quality with those four finalists, we are on equal footing. The most important thing is unity and supporting everyone."

"I remember some, like Dani Olmo, Zubimendi, Merino, and Oyarzabal. They are players of immense quality. One of the things that stands out was the energy put into training daily and the conviction, the character to win. That's what gets us to big stages and allows us to compete as if we were competing in our backyard with our friends. That helps create this unity and confidence. The collective logic of competitiveness.

"I haven't had the opportunity to work with the coach, but wherever he's been, he's always won titles. I think he's a coach with charisma and the ability to bring that out, at least from the work seen from the outside in the teams he's managed."