'Without my teammates, I wouldn't have been able to deal with that time in my life': Alisson opens up on father's death
Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker has opened up about the profound impact of losing his father during the 2020-2021 season, describing how the tragedy left him emotionally shattered but also revealed the depth of support within the football community and the club.
"When I got the call that my father died, I was an ocean away from home. I was in Liverpool, and we were in the middle of the 2020-2021 season. His death was sudden. A complete shock. My mother called me and told me that there had been an accident and that my father had drowned at the lake by our house.
"All I remember was I felt so lost. It did not seem possible that someone like my father could actually be gone. He was a “man’s man,” as they say. As strong as they come. I had always heard these stories about him as a kid. He was a goalkeeper, too. It runs in our DNA, I guess. On the pitch, they said he had absolutely no fear. He would charge out and throw his face right into the attacker’s boot.
"When he died, it destroyed me. I could not even think about football. I had to keep remembering that I even played football, and that we were fighting for the Top 4. It was even more complicated, because it was right in the middle of the pandemic, and the logistics of getting home were a nightmare.
"The following two or three days were a blur. The next thing I remember was all the flowers coming to our house. From Virgil, Andy, Fabinho, Firmino, Thiago…. on and on. All my brothers. Everyone sent us flowers with a note of condolences. And not just from my teammates, but even Pep Guardiola and Carlo Ancelotti sent me a condolence letter. It really touched my heart.
"Every 10 minutes, there was another knock at our door, with a delivery man holding flowers. I’ll never forget, Jurgen called me, and I was feeling so guilty about missing training, because we were outside the Top 4, and we needed every point. But Jurgen told me to take as much time as I needed.
"Without my teammates and without the club, I would not have been able to deal with that time in my life. When I returned to training a few days after the funeral, I would think about my father at random times. I couldn’t help it.
"I would have a flash of him standing on the sidelines when I was a kid watching me play, standing there like a true stoic, not saying a word. Or fishing with him at the lake, or sitting around the barbeque with him drinking chimarrao, saying a couple words every five minutes.
"But my teammates were unbelievable. They never once judged me. They acted like they were all a part of my family and they were in mourning, too. Being able to train again brought me a sense of calm. I always say that I did not 'choose' football. You cannot choose what is unconscious, what is already in your bones.
"Returning to the pitch was one of the main things that brought me peace. I rode the wave to calm waters," Alisson has shared.
