Footballers journeys to the top are rarely simple. Few players prove that more than Neto.
Arsenal’s deadline day signing is yet to make his Gunners debut, but he arrives with some pedigree. In a lengthy career the Brazilian has already played for likes of Valencia, Juventus and Barcelona and has won two Serie As and two Copa del Reys. It could all have been very different though.
Despite knowing that he wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a professional goalkeeper from a young age, Neto was something of a late bloomer. At the age of 12 he was forced to leave his youth club to join Athletico Paranense after falling behind his peers in terms of his development.
