It is no secret that the childhood of footballers is not always the best. Few are lucky enough to have a wealthy upbringing. In Colombia, for example, Carlos Bacca used to sell fish on the Colombian coast before becoming a professional. But the reality was even harsher for Patrice Evra.
The Senegal-born player, who represented the French national team, lived a complete nightmare when he was a child. In an interview with the BBC, Evra confessed and talked about his life on the streets, where he had to endure sexual abuse, drugs, and survive on the food he could find in dumpsters. He said that fortunately, he reacted at the right time and that football saved him.
The former player of Monaco, Manchester United, Juventus, Marseille, among others, commented for The Times, "I am not ashamed when I admit that for many years I felt like a coward for not talking about it. It was something that weighed heavily on my chest. But I am doing this not for myself, but for the children. I don't want anyone to feel ashamed for experiencing something like that."
For BBC One, he was more descriptive about his life before becoming a footballer. "I have sold drugs, I have begged, and I have worked in a TV store." However, he later said that one of those three things was not true, and added, "I didn't sell TVs."
In addition, it is worth highlighting how Patrice Evra managed to survive. His father left the house, and his 24 siblings had a very difficult youth. About his father's departure, he said, "Sometimes, at midnight, when they throw away cold 'Big Macs,' we used to pick them up from the trash. After my father left, everything was chaos."
Patrice Evra concluded by saying that becoming a professional footballer saved him. He confessed, "Football saved me. When I was 17, I traveled to Italy. I remember entering my room and there was a tracksuit. I called my mom and said, 'This is heaven, people serve us food, and we have two forks on one side and two knives on the other."