RaphinhaBrazilian player who F.C. Barcelona I signed for 48 million fixed and 12 in variableshas spoken about his most personal side in an article written by himself in ‘UOL Esporte’.
In an extensive article Raphinha (Raphael Dias Belloli) recounts his 25 years of life and his journey from poverty to the elite of football.
“I need to tell you a truth: it’s very complicated. For someone born in a neighborhood like me, it’s hard to stay focused. I’m from Restinga (a neighborhood in the South Zone of Porto Alegre). It’s hard to follow your path and not go astray. Opportunities appear, and there are many. They promise an easier way to earn money. And that’s where people get lost. I never went out of the way, but I was a witness, I walked alongside the people who were getting lost,” Raphinha begins her story.
I never went out of the way, but I was a witness, I walked next to the people who were missing
“I lost many friends in the world of crime, in drug trafficking… Friends who played ten times better than me and who could have been in a great soccer club in the world,” explained the man from Porto Alegre.
“Having these examples close by was an important factor in keeping me focused. I knew what I wanted from a very young age: to be a footballer. Achieving this goal by leaving a neighborhood is a great sacrifice. But my ambition was even greater. I did not deviate. If today they speak of my ‘magic’ in football, I mean… this is the real magic,” Raphinha said of her childhood environment.
It was thanks to my family that I never dropped out of school and ignored the opportunities I had to take the wrong path. I’m here for them
Raphinha wanted to highlight the influence of her family in her life: “It was thanks to my family that I never dropped out of school and ignored the opportunities I had to take the wrong path. It is because of them that I am here.”
Raphinha asked for money on the street to eat: “They called me a tramp”
“It would be unfair to say that I have ever been hungry in my life because my parents never lacked food at home. Still, after training, I would stand on the street and ask people to buy me something to eat or a snack. Some people helped me, others called me a bum bluntly. And there was nothing to do, it was wait for the bus to come home so I could eat something. I was between 12 and 14 years old at the time, “he acknowledged.
After training, I would stand on the street and ask people to buy me something to eat or a snack.
Raphinha explains his departure from Rennes and his signing for Leeds: “The Premier was my childhood dream”
Raphinha, who in Brazil played for Ava FC and Vitria de Guimaraes before making the leap to Sporting de Portugal, highlights that in his career “the most notable and important episode was the decision to leave Rennes (France) for Leeds (England) “.
“It was hard to get out of there like that, but man… it was the Premier League, the championship of so many stars that I always followed with bright eyes. It was my childhood dream.”
Raphinha and his signing for Bara: “My childhood idols played for Barcelona”
The Brazilian winger writes that “with a lot of effort and dedication I achieved what I always wanted” and describes the FC Barcelona as “the biggest club in the world”.
My childhood idols played for Barcelona, so I had a dream of coming here and I spared no effort to achieve it
“I had a lot of offers after my time at Leeds, but I knew exactly what I wanted. My childhood idols played for Barcelona, so I had a dream to come here and I spared no effort to achieve it,” explains Raphinha.
Ronaldinho Gacho is one of my idols and he wore the Barcelona shirt.
“Ronaldinho Gacho is one of my idols and he wore the Barcelona shirt. I couldn’t talk to him before coming here, but I’m sure he would tell me to follow my dream,” he said.
Music, a key element in Raphinha’s life and career
Raphinha highlighted in ‘UOL Esporte’ the important role that music has in her life: “Throughout this entire trajectory, music has accompanied me. I always say that it is my refuge. When I have time, when I go to train, or even before the games, the music accompanies me. Almost always my father’s samba pagoda. For me it’s like a kind of relaxing medicine that helps me concentrate.
