[ad_1]
The son of unemployed parents, a nine-year-old goalkeeper saw his dream of being a player threatened. The club he played for, Vasco, wanted him to go from futsal to the field. But sending the child to train without the help of R $ 600 that the salon provided would be impossible for that family of Dr. Laureano, in Duque de Caxias. Without transport help, Hugo Souza left Vasco.
At that time, Neneca, as he is nicknamed, could not imagine that some 12 years later he would already have a squad for the Brazilian team, a consolidated history at the base and an unforgettable performance for Brasileirão with the Flamengo jersey.
If it weren’t for the lack of R $ 600, maybe he would be in the rival today instead of being excited by what he did against Palmeiras this Sunday. In addition to the performance, Hugo drew attention for the post-match interview. Excited, he recalled that he had played his first game without his father, Jorge, who passed away on March 10.
– I was out of action for nine months. The difference in the last game of this one is that my father was watching me. Today I no longer have it. He was my great supporter, he told TV Globo.
Hugo started playing ball from four to five years old. Curiously, the title that he fondly keeps from the first chapters of his life is a futsal status against Flamengo.
– We were champions in extra time, 5 to 3. I was eight years old. It was my last year in Vasco – he said, in a conversation with O GLOBO at the end of 2018, just published now.
Vasco’s story changed when the club brought the goalkeeper of the red-black rival to the futsal team. At the time, the club was also going through a political transition.
– My father went to ask the reason and they said he would have to go to the field. Only then was I in no condition, as my parents were unemployed. In Vasco’s futsal I had a grant of R $ 600 to go to train. Going to the field, there was no allowance. I was sad because I couldn’t continue, reports the goalkeeper.
Hugo has two older brothers from his father and a younger sister, the result of the relationship between Jorge and the goalkeeper’s mother, Rosilene. The father was a sales supervisor, but the crisis hit when he lost his job. After leaving Vasco, the doorman, who has sworn to have a flamenco heart since he was a child, spent a few months in schools. Until, in March 2009, Seu Jorge received a call from the father of another Basque futsal boy. He was intrigued to learn that Hugo didn’t have a club and made a bridge with Flamengo’s futsal coordinator at the time, Tito.
– I asked Tito when the test would start, he already told me he was in the group. I started in futsal and, the following year, I was already on the field – Hugo said.
To take this path, Flamengo gave the doorman and his father a RioCard. The routine could not be done without company. And there was a period when a trip helped. A colleague, Gabriel Magalhães, came from Teresópolis and picked him up on the road. This went on for about two and a half years. Even Gabriel moved to Recreio.
– I started having to take buses at 4 in the morning in Caxias to get to the Nest – he reported.
The route changed for Hugo at the age of 15, when he started living at Flamengo FC. It was three years having Ninho as home, literally. To shorten the distance, the family managed to rent a house in the Riocentro region. The residence in Caxias was rented to help with expenses. With the appreciation in Flamengo, Hugo got a better home in Vargem Grande, staying close to where he developed as a player.
At the Flamengo base, Hugo lived with goalkeepers like Yago Darub and Gabriel Batista. In the last two years he went and returned to base several times, until he had the opportunity this Sunday, against Palmeiras, before the embezzlement caused by Covid-19 and injuries.
The current contract with Fla expires on September 30, 2023 and has already been signed following the surprising selection for the main selection. In 2018, Tite took as a third option for the goal some names of the U-20 team. Hugo was the first of them.
Neneca stands out for her height (1.96 m), but she has the agility to defend shots, as in the main draw of the tie in São Paulo. Luiz Adriano’s header was hit point-blank. Under the goalposts, Hugo tries to develop a style that mixes idol characteristics.
– Júlio César, Buffon and Dida are the ones I have as a reference. I try to do some things. The doorman is very detailed. Dida has a very good reading on penalties, especially. Buffon has an absurd reaction speed. Júlio César is Júlio César: a technical goalkeeper, fast, a reference for everyone – he explains.
Hugo saw the glories of Flamengo up close in 2019. But the goal is to be part of history. He no longer needs the R $ 600, but the dream is the same as that boy so loved by Jorge, the original Neneca and the whole family.
