Adriano shares heartbreaking reason why he retired from football so early
Arguably one of the greatest striker ever, Adriano shared the heartbreaking reason for his early retirement from football.
The legendary Brazilian striker had played for Inter Milan where he won four Serie A titles. He also scored 27 goals in 48 games for Brazil, including a crucial one in the 2004 Copa America final against Argentina.
Adriano told that his football career spoiled due to his drinking, weight gain and an inability to stay away from the Brazilian favelas he grew up around.
“After that day, my love for football was never the same,” Adriano explained of the day he got a phone call while in Milan, to tell him his father had died suddenly of a heart attack.
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“He loved the game, so I loved the game. It was that simple. It was my destiny. When I played football, I played for my family. When I scored, I scored for my family.
“So when my father died, football was never the same.
“I was across the ocean in Italy, away from my family, and I just couldn’t cope with it. I got so depressed, man. I started drinking a lot. I didn’t really want to train. It had nothing to do with Inter. I just wanted to go home.”
According to him, his passion for football has never been the same after his father’s death.
Because of his declining form, Adriano left Inter on loan and return to Brazil to play for Sao Paulo in 2008.
In 2009, the number 9 scored 19 goals in 30 games for Flamengo, this was all but the end of his football career. He signed for Miami United in the US in 2016 but left before playing a single game.
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“When I popped my Achilles in 2011? Man, I knew that’s when it was over for me, physically,” he explained in the Players’ Tribune.
“You can get surgery and rehabilitate it and try to carry on, but you will never be the same. My explosiveness was gone. My balance was gone. Shit, I still walk with a limp. I still have a hole in my ankle.
“Man, what happened to Adriano?”
Brother, it’s simple. I have a hole in my ankle, and one in my soul.”
