Brazilian football star Ronaldinho wants to "make history" at the Beijing Olympics, where he hopes to claim the first Olympic gold medal for the South American football giant.
"We have the chance to make history as the first team to claim Olympic gold for Brazil," the striker told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa .
According to Milan's new signing, Saturday's quarterfinal against Cameroon in Shenyang will be crucial for his team.
"Tomorrow is an extremely important day. It is the first final. We know we'll have to run a lot and to seek to balance the match in the face of the rival's physical strength," the Brazilian captain said.
At the Sydney 2000 Olympics, it was Cameroon who eliminated Brazil in the quarterfinals. With only nine men on the pitch, the African side managed to score a golden goal to advance to the semis.
Ronaldinho was part of that Olympic team, but he told dpa that he has already put that trauma behind him.
"We are no longer thinking about that defeat. We are only thinking about the game tomorrow. We have to stay focused so that we make no mistakes," he said.
Brazilian midfielder Lucas admitted that the Sydney defeat was engraved as "a bitter memory" on the minds of Brazilian players, but he insisted that Saturday's game is a different story.
"Now it's us who are here, and we'll go out onto the pitch to play a good game," he stressed.
In case things get tough, Brazilian coach Carlos Dunga devoted part of Friday's training session to practising penalty shots.
If they qualify for the semis, Dunga's men are to travel to Beijing for the first time during the Games. Some said they were looking forward to the possibility of mixing with other athletes.
"The chance to be at the Olympic Village is an extra motivation for me. I have never been there, but I have heard wonders about it, they say you meet athletes from all over the world," Lucas said.
The Liverpool midfielder expressed his wish to meet US superstars like the members of the basketball Dream Team and swimming king Michael Phelps.
However, Lucas has already suffered a disappointment in the results of his greatest idol in sport.
"The sportsman I most wanted to meet has already been eliminated. It's Roger Federer. It's a pity," he said.
Lucas will be pleased to find out that Federer - although out of the singles tournament - qualified for the doubles final Friday, in a Swiss team with friend Stanislas Wawrinka.