Alisson, the most expensive goalkeeper in the world, was close to quitting football.

An old goalkeeper coach, mentor of Brazilian international Alisson, confessed this Tuesday to the newspaper The Sun that he persuaded his parents not to give up on being a goalkeeper.

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The 25-year-old goalkeeper, who was signed by Liverpool in a record transfer of 75 million euros, was slightly overweight due to bad eating habits and his parents preferred him to quit football and focus on studies.

"One day his parents came to me thinking that he had no future in the profession and wanted to take him out of football," said his mentor Daniel Pavan to The Sun.

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"They thought he would have a better future in studies," he added. "But I worked to convince them that Alisson would still grow and have a great future as a goalkeeper."

Pavan said he reassured the parents about Alisson's short height at the time. Today, the former Roma goalkeeper measures 1.93 meters.

"When Alisson started, he had a slower maturation than the other kids, which made him shorter and heavier than the rest," said Pavan, who admitted he was not a starter.

But "thankfully, they (his parents) listened to me. A year later, he grew 16.51 centimeters."

Source: AFP