Brazilian striker Cristiane has fond memories of playing for her country’s youth teams. She was only 15-years-old when she represented her nation for the first time, and before too long she was travelling to Canada to compete at the inaugural FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in 2002.
“We didn’t really know how important that competition was,” she told FIFA.com, recalling a tournament in which Brazil ultimately claimed fourth place. “But it was a great experience. We were a very young group and, as we didn’t feel any pressure, it was just a pure joy to be there. But it was also there that we realised that this is what we wanted to do.”
Fourteen yea…