Feature

The family and footballers who inspire Vieira

Fabio Vieira at London Colney

There are two sides to Fabio Vieira. On the pitch he has all the silky skills that we so readily associate with the best Portuguese players, but he also has a hard edge that belies his shy smile and seemingly reserved demeanour.

Off the pitch, too, he has his contradictions. He admits that he was something of a rebel at school, paying less attention than he might have during lessons while waiting for lunchtime or hometime to play football. Yet his biggest inspiration in life? Could it be Cristiano Ronaldo, or one of the great Portuguese players from the previous generation? Luis Figo, perhaps, or the sublime playmaker Rui Costa? Or maybe it’s Eusebio, from even further back in the mists of time? No, none of the above.

“My mum,” he says with an impish smile. “I have always been a mummy’s boy. My mum has always been my biggest supporter – a warrior and a fighter.”

There’s that hard edge again. It runs in the family. “My mum and my dad were both an inspiration to me when I was a child,” he adds. “Since a young age, I have been crazy for football and from the moment my dad saw I really liked football he decided to sign me up to my local team. From then onwards I started developing as a footballer and for that I need to thank my dad a lot, as he is one of the reasons I am here today.”

Don’t confuse that slight rebellious streak – “I was a crazy kid,” he told Sky Sports last week – with arrogance. The 22-year-old believes his family have given him strong foundations for life and the career he has pursued since childhood.

“I have always been super-humble,” he says. “I like spending time with my family, I don’t really recall going out in the evening. I had no time for that because I started playing football at a young age.”

Fabio Vieira at Emirates Stadium

Despite that passion, and the fact that playing or daydreaming about football occupied his every waking hour, Fabio didn’t have ambitions to play professionally until he was close enough to touch it.

“At the start I was just a kid and just wanted to have fun and play football with my friends,” he recalls. “I never thought it could be something so serious, but from the moment I started to grow and develop and when I signed for Porto I knew that the responsibilities were different. From then on everything became very serious and thankfully I have managed to make it and be here today.”

With an ever-increasing focus on mental health, in and out of sport, it’s significant how many footballers are admitting that there have been times when they have struggled with the game. Fabio is no different.

“There was a phase,” he says. “It wasn’t necessarily that I did not want to play football but I did question if I wanted to be a footballer. Am I here for a particular reason? Is it going to work out? This was when I was 14 years old at Porto, where I wasn’t really playing much and my body type didn’t also help me. However, I started to develop in other areas and worked on my intelligence on the pitch.”

Once he began to progress through the age groups, there was one coach in particular who the youngster found had an inspirational effect on him. “Yes, Mario Silva,” he says.

Mario Silva in action for Porto

Silva was a local-born left-back who had himself spent three years at the club from 2001 to 2004, acting as understudy to Nuno Valente during the years in which Jose Mourinho led Porto to the UEFA Cup in 2003, Champions League a year later and successive league titles. As a coach, Silva has had a nomadic career, but he did lead Porto’s Under-19s to the UEFA Youth League in 2019 – a competition in which Fabio featured nine times and scored in the 3-1 win over Chelsea in the final.

“Mario really interacted well,” Fabio reflects. “He understood the players and he brought the best out of me. It was great to see him working and he really helped me develop to a level I had never been at before.”

Progress from that point on was rapid, with Fabio playing initially for Porto B before making his debut for the first-team in June 2020. The playmaker identifies one particular moment from his blossoming career that sticks in his head – as it does for so many young players who get the opportunity to start their careers with their childhood clubs: “My first goal for Porto at the Dragao,” he says.

Fabio Vieira scoring for Porto against Olympiakos

It came against Olympiacos in a Champions League group game – which he started – in October 2020. “This was my dream since I was a kid. I started playing for Porto when I was eight and I only left at the start of this season, so I spent 15 years representing Porto. It was a dream come true scoring for Porto at the Dragao.”

For all that, Arsenal were a club that inspired Fabio when we came calling. “It is a club that I identify myself with, it is one of the biggest clubs in England and everyone knows it,” he says. “There have always been world-class players who have played for Arsenal, and when I saw the project – and how I would fit into the project – it was a no-brainer to join Arsenal.”

It’s safe to say that the club is living up to his expectations, on and off the pitch, although he shows he has great maturity by refusing to rush or get ahead of himself.

“This is a process,” says Fabio. “I am slowly integrating myself into a new country, a new culture, different weather. Everything is running smoothly, we are currently first and we are having a great season so far and we have to carry on working in the same way.”

It’s natural that a club’s hierarchy – in this case Edu and Mikel Arteta – and team-mates help a player to settle in, especially when they are young and living away from their home country for the first time, but the supporters have a role to play as well. Our fanbase have been quick to take Vieira to their heart. “They have been fantastic. Since I have arrived I have always felt their support and I even have my own song already!” he says.

Fabio Vieira celebrates scoring against Bodo/Glimt

“This makes you happy that you are recognised and you have support from them. Whether we’re home or away, they are always there and it is an extra motivation for us. It has been like that in all the games. In the Premier League the fans are very passionate, the stadiums are always full and our fans are the best.”

We have heard already about how his parents were a huge inspiration, but of course any young footballer will be influenced by the players they grow up watching, and Fabio is no different. His two favourite players will perhaps come as no surprise, but they do give an indication of how high the youngster sets the bar for himself.

“The two biggest influences for me are Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. Ronaldo not because he is Portuguese, but he is really someone who really inspires others with his work ethic, how he had to leave his family and his comfort zone to sign for Sporting, and for him to build the career that he has built inspires everyone. Messi is more to do with my style of play. I am similar to Messi and I appreciate the way that he plays.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi

“I have met Ronaldo,” he adds. “I met him with the national team as we would both be at the gym, and again recently in our game at Manchester United. He would always provide support and give advice to young players.”

It helps when players are inspired by a team-mate, and in Fabio’s case there is good news for the spirit around the club because he says all of them fire him up. “I think we have a very strong group here. We all get along very well and we are united. Everyone likes to spend time with each other and I think that is a key point in a football team. We all inspire each other.”

It helps that Fabio is naturally calm, despite what he says about being a “crazy kid” at school. “I find it quite natural to play as it is just a football game,” he says. “Only twice I was nervous before a game – my first game in the Champions League for Porto against Manchester City at the Etihad when there were no fans, and also my first game against Benfica for Porto.”

Finally, there is one last inspiration that the young player will always take with him. “My grandad, who has passed away but was someone who was very important in my life. He followed me everywhere I would go and he really liked watching me play at the Dragao.”

We have no doubt he – like us – would love watching you at the Emirates too, Fabio.

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