“Stop comparing women’s game with men’s.”
These words come from a 21-year-old female football player who has the world at her feet.
Francisca Nazareth, known as Kika, is an avid fan of women’s football besides being one of the best upcoming prospects to practice it.
The Portuguese player is considered as one of the best NextGen that is ready to light up the world in some of the best tournaments, including the Champions League and the World Cup where she has already made a name for herself.
In fact, in last year’s World Cup she became Portugal’s youngest ever scorer at 20 years of age after finding the net against Vietnam.
The previous record was held by none other than Cristiano Ronaldo who had scored against Iran in the 2006 men’s edition, at 21 years of age.
Kika is part of a generation of players that is now able to make a living out of the women’s game, unlike their predecessors who had it the hard way, even until recent years.
At the age of 16 she made her Benfica debut before signing her first professional contract just a year later.
Moreover, her impressive performances caught the eye of Ronaldo’s famous agent Jorge Mendes who now looks after Kika too.
Kika heaped praise on both the Portugal FA and Benfica for the commitment and investment towards the women’s game.
“Their investment is showing that women’s football can become our job,” she told the Times of Malta.
“I am 21 and already doing that. It’s incredible to be part of this new world.
“I think everyone is doing his part to help the women’s game in Portugal, which is incredible.”
Kika, whose preferred role is an advanced playmaker, explained how she has already been through many positive things in the women’s game despite her young age.
Portugal had qualified to the 2017 European Championships – when Kika was just 15, but it was their participation in the 2021 tournament and last year’s World Cup that boosted this movement on home soil.
“In two years, everything changed in the Portuguese women’s game,” Kika explained.
“We have more attention from the media and the public and this all thanks to our qualifications and to the Portugal FA for backing us throughout these years.”
The boom created in the women’s game in recent years has been incredible to witness and naturally, this leads to plenty of comparisons with the men’s game.
Kika is unfazed by these comparisons as she believes it’s not fair on the women’s game.
“I like to see our movement grow step by step and it does not make sense to compare it with the men’s game,” she explained.
“The men’s game has over 100 years of history already and we are just starting to write our own story.
“Therefore, let the game grow naturally.”
After a spectacular 2023 where she was the fifth best scorer for club and country across the world, with 30 goals, Kika has been in impressive form this season as well.
She has 22 goals and seven assists in all competitions as she continues to establish herself at both Benfica and Portugal.
“From our side as Portugal, we just need to enjoy this journey and make sure to remain competitive and qualify to keep generating more interest. Women’s football can become even bigger in the future,” she added.
Kika, however, prefers to play with happiness rather than pressure despite participations in the big tournaments bring more responsibility on their shoulders.
“Playing in a World Cup and doing well against the big nations including the United States adds more pressure to this group,” the Benfica star said.
“However, I think sometimes we need to remove the pressure on us and just play with a smile on our faces.
“If you always say, you must do that and you must do that, things can go wrong. So, it’s important for us that we keep one mindset and we continue on this path.”
She also added how teams like Malta are improving as well which means there are no easy games in the women’s game.
While lauding Malta’s efforts against them, she admitted that it was not Portugal’s best performance but she is upbeat about improving as she knows they are starting to being acknowledged as a top team.
