Richarlison: The story of the Everton striker who ‘in his blood is the desire to win’

It was in 2014 that his attempts to join the club Effie and Figueres failed and his beloved national team was humiliated at home in the World Cup.

In the midst of all this, Richarlison did not attract attention, despite being Real Norwest’s top scorer for the U-20 youth team, and the young striker almost lost hope.

Richarlison considered the bus trip to the West to test with second-tier team America MG as his last great chance and was determined not to give up.

Pedro Emmanuel, his childhood friend, told BBC Sport: “I remember that day he told me he was going to go, but he did not have sneakers. In fact, he had black shoes, but they were worn out. I said : “Man, Here are the blue and pink shoes that snatch All eyes should be on him, we thank God that everything went well.”

Of course it went well and this experience eventually led to 5 consecutive seasons in the Premier League with Watford and Everton.

Internationally, Richarlison won the America’s Cup with the Brazilian team and won the gold medal at the 2020 Olympics, while with his country’s team he will play in this year’s World Cup in Qatar.

However, everything could have been completely different.

Richarlison’s parents divorced when he was six years old and he spent 3 years living with his father Antonio working on his grandfather’s farm helping collect coffee beans, making long trips every weekend to play games football.

At the age of seven, people asked Antonios to invest in his son because he had a special talent, and the father responded by buying 10 soccer balls and sending his son to live with his aunt in Nova Venezia.

“We were very poor at the time,” Antonio, who wore the coaching uniform of the Nova Venezia club he runs and whose son is ambassador, told BBC Sport.

He added: “It was a very difficult childhood for him and it was also difficult for me because we lived in the village and every week we had to get in the back of a truck to get to where football matches and people were playing. However, he continued to say that he had a future in football, so when he was nine years old, I left him with my sister.

Richarlison helped set up his business by selling ice cream and chocolate on the street, washing cars, working in a cafe with his uncle Elton, and trying to work as a construction assistant.

While Antonio admits his son was not the most educated student at his school, Tito dos Santos Neves staff in the slum of Rubeola describe a polite, yellow-haired soccer boy dyed as his star. Favorite Neymar.

The school guard remembers him passing the front gates every day and running straight into the backyard to play football, while the teachers remember his humility and good manners.

“He did not like to study, but he was not undisciplined,” says Elisangela Monteiro Gede, who taught Richarlison when she was 11 years old.

“He always behaved well, he was not a rebellious boy in any way. He respected his teachers and he got this out of his medical family, and of course, then and in that area, he could have been involved in drugs. “Violence in that area, but he has always managed to avoid it,” she added.

In fact, he could not always avoid it.When Richarlison was 14, a local drug dealer held a gun to his face thinking he was Richalison’s son trying to distribute drugs in his neighborhood.

Antonio recalls that the school called him in another case after police arrested his son on the street.

“We were worried because the area at that time was dangerous,” says Antonio. “It was more than just mistaken for the fact that he was at the wrong time and place. Unfortunately, many of his friends went astray.”

Richarlison gives credit to Fidel Carvalho, his first youth coach, who is a police officer, who helped to escape a criminal life. Carvalho’s motto was “Never give up”.

Richarlison recalls that coach who charged 8 of the team with a Volkswagen in an out-of-town final and they came back victorious.

Richarlison, at the age of 16, played as an amateur with Real Norwest in the under-20 category, where his strength and way of playing proved to be a problem even for those three years older than him.

However, things ended badly when the club’s negotiations for a 2014 transfer to Club America MG were on the verge of collapse.

After much negotiation, Real Norwest was allowed to retain some of his rights, but that club’s position affected the mental health of Antonio, who was already suffering from depression. To this day, Richarlison does not like to talk about that period of his career.

Richarlison adapted to life at Club America MG easily after joining the U-17 team before moving quickly to play in the U-20 category after scoring 4 goals in his first appearance in 4 games.

America MG coach Euler de Almeida Araujo recalls admiring Richarlison’s strength and determination as he progressed by running up and down the cobbled streets of Nova Venice. Weeks later, he was training with the first team.

“He played on the wing where many mistakes were made against him, but he rarely fell,” says Araujo.

He added, “The defenders would hit him and he would fall. You would think he was injured, but he was getting up again and moving forward. He never gave up. He was like Ronaldo in his early youth, that physical strength and determination at such a young age ”.

Richarlison’s competition was not limited to football. Silvio Junio ​​Nunes da Silva, a massage therapist for Team America MG, recalls having to take his little boy to work the night before the game.

“Richardison was playing the PlayStation, so my son asked if he could play too,” he says.

He continued, “I let them play, but when I got back Richarlison had won 11-0. I said, ‘Enough man ..’ But he was ruthless. He wanted to keep scoring and keep winning. He was 17 years old, the boy was seven. ” of his age .. and the desire to win was in his blood. “

Marcelo Toscano played at the front for Richarlison in 2015 when Team America MG was promoted to Serie A in Brazil.

He is remembered as a talented, humble player with a big nose.

Marcello Toscano said: “It was a lot of fun, we always joked back and forth, at the time, we called him a toucan (bird with a big beak), I mean his nose is not small, right? “

He added: “I said from the beginning that he would go away because of his work ethic, determination, talent and humility. We scored a lot of goals that season and it is no coincidence that he is in his place today.”

Richarlison stayed at America MG for just one year, scoring 9 goals in 24 games before selling to Fluminense for 10 million Brazilian riyals (worth milionë 1.6 million today) at the age of just 18, and in 2017 he transferred to the Watford team. England, for .5 11.5 million.

Talk to anyone at Club America MG and they will have a story to share about their famous ex-teammate and his down-to-earth appearance.

For example, when a young player in America MG receives his first professional salary, the club rules dictate that he leave the academy residences to make room for someone else.

But Richarlison, instead of renting the beautiful apartment specified by his agent, preferred to continue living with his teammates and the mouse who frequented the bedrooms in the evening. He withdrew only 20 percent of his first salary and used the rest to support his family.

“He was a very simple, humble person and a really good person who helped anyone who could help,” says Zee Ricciardo, a quarterback for Team America MG who lived with Richarlison in the academy residences.

He added: “The boys who do not have sneakers, he gave them the shoes. He has a very good heart.”

This humility and compassion remained with him even as his career progressed.

Antonio adds: “He had a close relationship with his grandfather and great-grandfather and everyone said the same things about him in terms of humility and hard work. He should not lose that essence.”

He went on to say: “When he comes to Nova Venice, he helps with everything he can, and if it were in his hand, he would walk the streets in light shoes and play football with the kids on the field just like he did . before. Unfortunately, it has become much more dangerous for him. Now, so he’s doing it online. “

And few, if any, active players are as vocal as Richarlison when it comes to social issues.

He has helped raise awareness and raise funds for a wide range of charities that are active in many areas, including the fight against deforestation, the rape crisis in Brazil, the fight against COVID-19 and the importance of voting in the presidential election. this year. .

And in 2019, shortly after paying a group of Brazilian students to travel to Taiwan to compete in an international math competition, he was awarded the highest honor available to an athlete in his state, Espirito Santo. When asked to speak, he urged the regional government to increase investment in education.

A year later, he was named Everton champion in the PFA after hosting a charity match in Nova Venezia, which provided 6.4 tonnes of food to those in need.

He said in a statement on the club’s official website: “We all play in the major leagues and we have a space in the media, we have a great social responsibility.”

“At first I just wanted to buy a house for my parents, but then I saw that I could do bigger things,” he added.

As Everton find themselves struggling to relegate this season with rumors circulating about Richarlison’s departure from the club and a possible meeting with Neymar at Paris Saint-Germain, no one can question his commitment as he continues to leave traces all over the field.

This may not be the feature often associated with Brazilian footballers, but it is a good sign of his chances of success at the World Cup later this year.

“He has dreamed about it since he was a child watching Ronaldo in 2002,” says Antonio, standing a short distance from the red brick bus station, where it all started. “I always told him he would play in the World Cup and I also told him he would be the top scorer, so let’s see.”