Aston Villa striker Wesley Moraes recalls his time training with Atletico Madrid as a teenager and he admits he was a little intimidated by Diego Costa.
Wesley had a trial at the Spanish club as a teenager but they opted not to sign him, before the player took in spells in Slovakia and Belgium.
“I played there when I was 17 for six months. I was a little bit afraid with these big players there – Diego Costa, Miranda and Raul Garcia – but it was amazing,” he told Sky Sports.
“I was young, I couldn’t go in and elbow Diego Costa!” The player also recalls the spell he spent in Slovakia at the outset of his career.
“I had to get money for my kids. I would go to a team and every team said no. I went to six teams before going to Slovakia.
“When I went to the sixth team, I thought I didn’t want to play football anymore. I thought it was finished for me. Then I got a chance.
“The first few weeks there were difficult. It was very cold. The first three months, I think it was snowing all the time.I came from Brazil and I couldn’t feel my feet so it was difficult to play football!”