Once the rising star of Brazilian football, Adriano probably never had the career which matched his talent level. The most used player for fans of PES 6 at the time, he is now only a shadow of the player he once was.
Discover our latest podcast
Speaking to the media a few years ago, Adriano confessed that after the death of his father he sank into a great depression. Alcohol and other substances then replaced the ball in his daily life in order to try and help the Brazilian escape the grief. ‘Whiskey, wine, vodka, beer... Especially beer. So much beer. I could not stop myself. I did not know how to hide the situation from the club. So I went to practice in that state. The staff took me to sleep in the infirmary,’ he said in an interview to R7.
Today having returned to Brazil, he explained that a return to the football field was a possibility. However since then, it has been radio silence. There was a time when he posted a lot of pictures of himself with the ‘Red Command’, perpetrators of the gang wars in the favelas. Since then, we have not had any more news from him, but as he himself said: ‘Returning to Brazil later, I gave up a lot of money but I found the joy of living again.’ And that's all we want for him.
Take a look at the video above for more on Adriano's sad story.
