João Cancelo reviewed his career in an interview with the official magazine of the Champions League. In an impressive account, the side trained at Benfica addresses the death of his mother, in 2013, in a car accident.
“Only I know what she did for me, the difficulties we went through together, the conversations she had with me when there was no money at home. I told her I would do everything to give her a better future so she wouldn’t have to work anymore. Even today, even though I know she is where she is, I do everything to make her proud of me. My mother was always a fighter. In addition to the jobs she had, she always found time to take me to training. These are small values that you don’t lose: whatever the difficulties, we always have the strength to overcome them”, she said, remembering the great loss she had:
“When I lost my mother, I felt like I was at the bottom of a well. I felt like a robot that had to do its job, then go home, then a new day. When I lost my mother, I didn’t like my football. I played because I had to. I even thought about giving up because it no longer made any sense. Benfica’s staff were constantly calling me, asking me to come back because they believed in my potential. My father let things settle, then spoke to me. He told me that both he and my brother needed me, needed me to have the strength to carry on. »
«I had already signed a professional contract with Benfica and, at that time, much of the money I earned was to support the family, so I decided to play again. At first it was not easy. I didn’t have the strength, I didn’t have the desire, but that conversation with my father and the love I have for this sport made me overcome everything», he revealed.
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