FIFA award winner cries after buying a Flamengo shirt | OneFootball

Author of the most beautiful goal in the world in 2015, Wendell Lira got emotional during a moment with his son

Once Flamengo, always Flamengo. A former football player and the scorer of the goal that earned the FIFA Puskas Award in 2015, Wendell Lira has been a Flamengo fan since childhood. Recently, the now-gamer had the chance to buy a Mengão kit for his son and broke down in tears.

View this photo on Instagram A post shared by Mais Goiás Esporte (@maisgoiasesporte)

— I’m here at the Flamengo store and, when I was little, I dreamed of being a football player. I would save up what I had and run around, playing, dreaming that I was a football player. I still remember when my mother gave me a simple little Flamengo kit and I went to play with my brother —, said Wendell Lira.

— That stuck with me so deeply. Today, my son is five years old and I’m buying his first little kit. It may seem silly, but it’s so beautiful to see time go by and be able to do for your child what you couldn’t do when you were younger —, added the 37-year-old former player.

WHO IS WENDELL LIRA, ANYWAY?

Wendell Lira rose to fame in 2015, when he scored an anthology-worthy goal, half-volley, half-bicycle kick, while playing for Goianésia against Atlético-GO. Even with international fame, the then-striker shocked the world by announcing his retirement in 2016, at just 27 years old.

Wendell then began investing in a career as a professional video game player. He has given interviews saying that he makes more money with a controller in his hand than he did during his football days. On the field, the athlete played for small clubs such as Vila Nova, Tombense, Anapolina, URT, and others.

— Today, financially speaking, I earn much more than I did when I was a football player. I have stability, financial balance, and I’m able to think about my family. The world of e-sports is huge, and I think people still don’t grasp how big it is —, he said in January of this year.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.