Soccer (Football)
Tough Beginnings
Marcelo ... "The family watch" is the secret behind his sparkle.
Any enquiry about the best left back players has to include Brazilian Marcelo Vieira da Silva Júnior, star of the Spanish Real Madrid football team.
This player has proved himself strongly in the "Club of the Century" and his name has become a solid value.
Marcello during a training session
© Maxisport
It is true that Marcelo (29 years), like most other players in Europe, enjoys a lifestyle of great luxury thanks to his high salary, but the beginnings of this star , who is considered as the successor of his compatriot Roberto Carlos in his position in Real Madrid, weren’t always a bed of roses.
He has gone through great life ordeals before shining like a star on the “green fields”.
Marcelo grew as a poor and simple child in one of Rio de Janeiro alleys, and he was about to give up on football for good.
He owes everything he has accomplished till this day to his grandfather, who was brought him up because of family problems.
When he was banned from the junior team for not paying his subscription fee, his grandfather sold the family watch, his most prized possession. He told his grandson: “That’s okay. You will pay me back a thousand times more.”
Few years later, Marcelo almost quit football. One day, he told his coach in one of the junior league teams: “I will not attend the training sessions anymore because I don’t have enough money to pay for transport”, but his talent was a reason enough for the club to take upon themselves the transport expenses.
Marcelo is known for his great loyalty to everyone who stands by his side. On his arm, he has a tattoo of his grandfather whose death years ago deeply saddened him.
When he was transferred to Real Madrid, Ramon Calderon who was the club president at that time said: ”Signing up Marcelo is important for us, because he is a young player and he will add a lot to the left wing of the team. He is part of our plan which relies on young players.”
Undoubtedly, Calderon’s expectations were right because Marcelo is today one of the "Royal Club" symbols.
The player started his professional career with the Brazilian club, Fluminense, in 2005 until 2007 when he got transferred to Real Madrid with which he won La Liga (2007, 2008, 2012 and 2017), the King’s Cup (2011 and 2014), the Spanish Super Cup (2008 and 2012), Champions League (2014 and 2016), the European Super Cup (2014 and 2016), and the Club World Cup (2014 and 2016).
Marcelo is certainly looking forward to the third of next June, eagerly hoping to win again the Champions League again against the Italian Juventus in the Welsh capital, Cardiff.