«I alerted the clubs in Portugal, but they did not pay attention» :: zerozero.pt

*by Diogo Vidal Silva

Currently, South Sudan is the country with the largest refugee crisis on the African continent (UN data), and every year, millions of South Sudanese leave their homes in search of a better life.

Among these millions of refugees, a phenomenon has emerged that has turned their lives upside down in the space of three years: Garang Kol.

“Here in Australia, you won’t find another one like it in 15 or 20 years.”

It is the Portuguese who defends it Sergio RaimundoAnd the Garang’s current assistant coach – Central Coast Mariners. in conversation with zero zeroThe coach opens the book on the story of a boy who was a war refugee rejected by Portuguese clubs and is now preparing to be the biggest sale in the history of the Australian Championship.

Sergio Raimundo, from They are already trained Names like Bernardo Silva or Rúben Dias, they left Portugal to learn new cultures/languages ​​and that was on his hand, and a technical team formed by another Portuguese, Miguel Miranda (goalkeeper coach), and Nick Montgomery (head coach), that broke out the Kuol nickname in the world of football.

He lived with many brothers, all refugees from and outside the war»

Destination – Australia. Garang did not have an easy start in life. Growing up in Egypt, mired in panic and in a crowded bed, however, moving to Shepparton – a city in the Australian outback – sparked hope in his family. This is, especially when, in 2019, Hello Kuol He joins hands with his brother – Garang – towards the dream of professional football.

“Garang lived with many brothers, many people in the same room, all refugees from war and without many conditions, and ended up coming to Australia. In fact, He can even thank his brother. Despite being in the third division, Allo stood out because he was very young and scored many goals. He even took exams at Sporting Academy – and ended up not staying – and came here [Mariners]It was submitted to our portal.

Alo Cole playing in Stuttgart, Germany © Getty / DeFodi

“Alo always told us: If you think I’m good, Wait till you see my brother… At the time, Garang was under the age of 16 in a third-tier team in Australia. [Shepparton Soccer Club]Half lost inside. We said, “Okay, get Garang, we’ll do some practice and see how it goes,” and when we saw Garang…I remember looking at Nick – the head coach – and saying, “That goes away!” It is to explain.

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Garang at Shepparton U-16 Football Club © Personal Archive

about how Garansky Live football, Sergio notes that in addition to his ability to score goals, he has something unique about his game: Street football.

“His surrender, his first touch, his face to one, is very strong in tight spaces and manages to dribble. She has a bit of a swing Brazilian football, that street football you play against your cousins, with brothers and he has no idea but I tell him: “You may not understand why you do it, but you play against your older cousins ​​and brothers in Shepparton,” he explained.

q Alo’s always told us: If you think I’m fine, wait until you see my brother.

However, not everything in the journey of the young striker was perfect. Before joining the main team, Raimundo described some weaknesses and the need for this Smooth some edges in advanced youth.

“I had no knowledge of movements, marks and defensive work. When we finished the examsAnd the He did not make the first team‘, he began by saying.

The youngster, between 2020 and 2021, passed under-20 and under-23 and only in 2022 made his debut with the main team (and what a debut!), says Sergio: “In the first match He entered and scored and then stayed for a period at a rate of one goal every 20 minutes! From then on, he started noticing.”

Garang Kol Australian League 2021/2022

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koala grunge record, Last seasonSome of the achievements that accompanied the meteorite rise: Four goals in only 190 minutesIt was He was chosen to work there All star game from A-League and recently made The first appearance of the Australian national team. Even before this way explosive material, Which put many European sharks on their feet, Garang was even offered to Portuguese clubs, but the response was not positive.

© Getty Images/Hannah Peters

“I alerted some clubs in Portugal but they didn’t pay much attention…”

Sergio described with some disappointment how Garang had not received the attention his talent deserved. The Portuguese coach exposes his disbelief – “nobody called me” – and the vilification of the A-League – “Portuguese people said it was like the Portuguese fourth division” – when he refers to Portuguese clubs’ “denial” of talent. Garang.

“I warned some clubs in Portugal, but they didn’t care much… a Response It was always: “The league is not very good!” No one called me. There are many outstanding players here but People from Portugal said: ‘It’s like the Portuguese fourth division’‘, he announced.

qIt was a shame because some Portuguese clubs showed interest, but it was too late. At an early stage, no one paid much attention. There has been some interest in playing under-19s, but at a later stage. Now it is impossible for Portuguese clubs, with the exception of the Big Three.

“It was a shame because some Portuguese clubs showed interest, but it was too late…At an early stage, no one paid much attention. There has been some interest in playing under-19s, but at a later stage. He concluded his speech by saying that it is now impossible for the Portuguese clubs, except for the big three.

I still remember seeing Dani Alves’ face like ‘I can’t believe he’s going to score’

a All star game The A-League is a friendly match where the best players in the A-League meet against an invited club. In the 2022 game Kuol ‘It wasn’t meant to be included’but it ended up being his choice.

It was fate (and the will of the fans) that put the boy, who was only 17 years old, ahead of one goliath world football – Barcelona. Kuol was the most talked about topic after the match, and not only did he lift the pitch and deserve Xavi’s praise, but Dani Alves put his hands on his head.

© Getty/Mark Metcalfe

“One of the league managers includes him as a wild cardBecause he’s a very interesting player. He enters and everyone in the stadium is making noises. In that match against Barcelona I was there with Nick and there were 75,000 people in the stands. When he put it, we think: This would definitely raise the pitch, and he had two actions there going through half of the Barcelona squad, and I still remember seeing Dani Alves’ face like, “I can’t believe he’s going to score.”The Portuguese coach recalls with a smile of unconvincing pride.

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© Getty Images / Lisa Marie Williams

“I have no doubt: he will be the greatest player in Australian history”

Xavi Hernandez, at the end of the match, was not indifferent to Kranj: “He played very well, created many chances, for a 17-year-old boy … it’s incredible.” When Sergio was asked if the striker was thrilled with those words, he said Cole was “very modest, mentally strong and not as impressive as most people”.

qThere are more temptations around him and if he can get past this stage, and if he can handle it well, there is no doubt that he will be, perhaps, the greatest player in Australian history!

“I always say this to young people: Success always brings many friends, failure shows true friends, and then everything is gone. So with success, there are more people around him, there are more temptations around him and if he can get past this stage, if he can handle it well, I have no doubt that he will be, perhaps, the greatest player in Australian history!” Hoot.

And about the “harassment” of some European sharks and the possibility of them moving to another tournament, Sergio was an order: “It’s just a few days … or hours,” and stated that the young man had three very strong performances.

“One of the clubs in the Spanish League, the club in the English Premier League and another offer from one of the clubs in the Bundesliga. It will be the highest amount paid to the Australian club And by an Australian player,” he explained without giving any numbers, concluding that if he went to the Premier League (the striker, according to English press, will move to Newcastle) Garang «will do damage». It should be noted that the most expensive transfer in the history of the A-League was Zeljko Kalach (1995), worth about 1.7 million euros.

Finally, Sergio Raimundo spoke of a “unique” and “very good” project by the Mariners, which aims to empower young people – like the Kuol brothers – to reach the higher levels. However, given his experience throughout his career, he has no doubts:

«Here in Australia, you won’t find another one like it in 15 or 20 years.“, Been completed.