'I will never take you to training ever again': Felix reveals he nearly quit football but continued due to his dad's ultimatum
Joao Felix spoke to the Chelsea website about his time growing up in Portugal and the struggles he went through to be able to become a professional footballer.
"It was a little bit difficult when I started with Porto because every time I finished school, my dad got me at school and drove me over to Porto for training and after training we’d come back to Viseu.
"We arrived home at, like, 11pm, and the next day I’d wake up at half-past-seven for school. It was not easy times but the reward is here now. I think my parents deserve that.
"Going to Porto when I was 11 was very difficult. I remember the first night I called my dad crying and saying: “come get me, I don’t want to stay here, I want to go home”.
"I remember my father said: “okay I will come for you, I will take you home, but I will never take you to training ever again. You knew that it would be difficult so you need to stay and try, but if you want to come home I will get you”. So I stayed the rest of the night and then for three more years.
"In the beginning it was very good there but in the last year or two I was having trouble playing in the team. Things didn’t go well. I was too skinny, not tall, that was difficult for me.
"When I was 14 or 15 years old I told them that I wanted to leave, I wanted to try another club, I wanted to go play at home. I didn’t care, I just wanted to play and be happy. And then the opportunity to go to Benfica appeared and I accepted, for sure."
