Atlético: Reinildo Mandava: “The only thing I'm afraid of is stealing and going to jail” | Soccer

Life has not been easy for Reinildo Mandava (Mozambique, 30 years old). He grew up in the midst of poverty and as a child he avoided the danger of the streets on the walks he undertook daily to go to training. He does not lose his smile to relate the hard experiences that he had to face in his country, nor to explain the day-to-day life of the year it has taken him to recover from a serious knee injury. Simeone has recovered a footballer who offers him energy in large doses and who wins most of the individual defensive duels in which he stars. This Tuesday at San Siro, it could be one of the keys to sustaining Inter Milan’s powerful attack.

Sommer, Alessandro Bastoni, de Vrij, Benjamin Pavard, Darmian (Denzel Dumfries, min. 69), Mkhitaryan (Davide Frattesi, min. 72), Calhanoglu, Dimarco (Carlos Augusto, min. 69), Barella, Lautaro Martínez (Alexis, min. 88) and Marcus Thuram (Arnautovic, min. 45)

Oblak, Witsel, Giménez (Savic, min. 45), Mario Hermoso (Reinildo Mandava, min. 68), Samuel Lino, Koke, Saúl (Morata, min. 54), De Paul, Nahuel Molina (Pablo Barrios Rivas, min. 68), Griezmann (Correa, min. 77) and Marcos Llorente

Goals 1-0 min. 78: Arnautovic.

Referee István Kovács

Yellow cards Mario Hermoso (min. 53), Savic (min. 81), Morata (min. 84), Davide Frattesi (min. 86), Koke (min. 92) and Carlos Augusto (min. 94)

Ask. In the first press conference he gave after recovering, he said that in his life he had been through worse things than the injury.

Answer. It is a delicate topic because to get where I am I have gone through a lot of things. It is not easy for a Mozambican boy to be in one of the best clubs in the world. The childhood I had, what my family was like, or what was happening, or what I did, as a small boy, how I would walk for an hour to go to training… Sometimes I would go without being able to eat and without knowing if I would be able to. When I say I’ve been through tougher things, I mean I’m not going to break down because of an injury. I am a very happy person, I thank God that every day I wake up I have a life because I am breathing and that is the most important thing.

P. Was it difficult to develop in Mozambique?

R. I was born and raised in a very poor family, my parents did everything so we could grow up.

P. His father was a footballer.

R. My grandfather was a player and my father was a player and coach. At my house we all played, even my sister. It is a very athletic family.

P. Of those walks to go to training, what impacted you the most?

R. Many things, if I start talking we don’t finish the interview. I had the illusion of a child who was willing to go through anything, in fact I went through everything when I was walking, but it was one more thing to follow my dream of being a professional player. I have achieved it.

P. Weren’t you afraid when you walked through those turbulent streets?

R. I have never been afraid, the only thing I have been afraid of is stealing and going to jail and I never thought about stealing in my life. I was born not having it and stealing was not going to change anything.

P. Is it true that in Mozambique they ask you a lot for advice?

R. Yes, I give talks in orphanages, but not just because of where I am, it’s because of how I am as a person. In my country, people respect me a lot, because I respected my parents a lot. I am like my father was, very happy. The kids like to hear how I’ve managed to achieve what I’ve achieved. It’s not that I’m a superior person, but I have a different way of thinking. I like to give advice and receive it, I always say that I am going to die learning.

P. Atlético’s doctors say that he has been an exemplary patient in the year that he has been injured.

R. I have handled it in a super positive way. I would recover and go home and continue in the pool until almost midnight or one in the morning. I was alone in the pool, hot or cold, I did it every day.

P. This makes it easier to understand that on cold days he is the only one of his teammates who trains in a t-shirt with the sleeves cut off at the shoulder.

R. I feel good like this, the sweatshirt weighs me down. I told my friends in Mozambique that if one day I played in Europe I would fly because I like cold temperatures.

P. Why did he go down before and after games on crutches to see his teammates?

R. I live what I do, I live football, it is the warmth I needed in those moments and my teammates also because of the way I am, they know that I will always be with them.

P. Where did you acquire that defensive strength?

R. It has to do with my father, who was a central defender and always told me that talent is not enough and that you have to work. I work every day and then anything can happen because I’m not perfect. I’m not afraid of playing, I always give 120 percent of myself. It may happen that I make a mistake like against Athletic in the Cup and score a penalty, but it was because of my aggressiveness, because of how I experience the games. I don’t like to play games as if I were walking, that way I don’t feel anything. I live the games.

P. Simeone wants him to improve his offensive side.

R. I played left back and was very offensive in France. This has to do with trust. If you get to a big team and start playing in a way that you’re not used to, it’s hard for you. I am offensive, but I need confidence from the coach, my teammates and myself to be relaxed.

P. At San Siro, if he plays as a center back, will Lautaro Martínez and Thuram await him, and if he plays as a wing back, will he have to defend Inter’s wing attack, which is one of their strongest weapons?

R. I don’t look at the names, I am there to defend whoever and to help my teammates. I only notice faces when I’m in the field. We can compete with them face to face, even if they are favorites. We know what we want, it is not impossible.