The name of Álvaro Djaló would go unnoticed by any Athletic fan if it were not for a fundamental fact in his biography. The young footballer, of Guinean parents and born in Madrid, cousin of the red and white Adu Ares, has grown up in Bilbao. Yesterday he shone again as he has been doing throughout the season with his team, Braga, which lost to Real Madrid 1-2 in the Champions League match.
When the second of the meringues got on the scoreboard with a shot of surgical precision from Bellingham, Braga, far from lowering its head, stirred. The answer, almost instantaneous, was provided by Álvaro Djaló, this young footballer who grew up in the Biscayan clubs until he emigrated to Portugal to look for a future that he has already found and successfully.
Two years ago, Djaló was playing in the youth ranks of Sporting de Braga and any possible interest from Athletic responded more to his origin than to his performance. At 22 years old he was still playing in the Portuguese club’s second team, a prospect that was not exactly encouraging.
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However, everything changed last season when Artur Jorge took over the reins of Braga after the departure of Carlos Carvalhal. Djaló completed the preseason, convinced the coach of him and earned a place as a full member of the first team. He only started seven games, but he became a regular force and finished the season with five goals and five assists, very positive numbers considering his role. This course, however, has been his explosion. At 24 years old, Álvaro Djaló has earned the title of starter and is also the team’s top scorer with seven goals. In the best moment of his career, he will face Real Madrid tonight (9 p.m.).
His beginnings do not have the glamor of other footballers of his age. He did not go through the youth system of any big club, he did not play in the best categories, nor did he receive a call from the national team. Born in Madrid, Álvaro moved with his parents to the Basque Country as a child and began his career at San Miguel de Basauri. From there he went to Begoña, where he played in Second Youth, the lowest category of Biscayan football. When the Begoña coaches recommended Athletic hire him, the red and white club refused, considering that the jump from the second to the Honor Division was excessive.
Álvaro then decided to make a living for himself and at the age of 17 he went to Portugal to try out for different clubs. At Benfica they ruled him out due to his height and, despite reaching a verbal agreement with Sporting Lisbon, his signing did not materialize. He returned to Bilbao and weeks later he received a call from Braga. Álvaro passed the test and stayed in the Portuguese team, where he has gone step by step, overcoming stages until his arrival in the first team.
40 million clause
Djaló remembers with a smile his years in Biscayan football, where he amazed his rivals with his self-confidence and his dribbling talent. He was that type of player with so much self-confidence that he is able to dribble again a player he has already surpassed, which is why he received a lot of kicks. Also from his teammates, who couldn’t find any other way to stop an unstoppable player when he accelerated in training. In any case, not even his technicians could imagine his meteoric rise. He himself acknowledges that the jump to the First Division was great for him last season, but that it forced him to work and improve, and that he is now a much more accomplished footballer than he was a few months ago.
In September, Álvaro renewed his contract with Sporting de Braga until 2027, with a clause of 40 million, a sign of the confidence they have in his future at the Portuguese club. Seven years after touring the fields of the second youth team, Álvaro Djaló will face Real Madrid tonight in the best competition in the world.
2023-10-25 05:13:29
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