ACCRINGTON STANLEY? I’M NUTS FOR ’EM
Brazilian fan flies 6,000 miles to League Two clash
A FOOTBALL fan has flown 6,000 miles from Brazil to see his beloved League Two team in action for the first time.
Fabricio Barcelos Cardoso started following Accrington Stanley FC 22 years ago when he discovered the team while playing FIFA on PlayStation with his son.
But his dreams of cheering on the Lancashire side from the stands came true on Tuesday when he watched the Reds trounce AFC Wimbledon 2-0.
Fabricio said: “The club welcomed us with immense warmth. Even the weather is helping us. It’s been an everlasting day in Lancashire.”
Journalist Fabricio, wife Monica and sons Inacio and Olavo walked the pitch and visited the locker room before kick-off at Wham stadium. He said: “At halftime, we received a shirt signed by all the players. And we presented the award to the best player of the match, who was the goalkeeper [Radek Vitek].
“It was an absolutely unforgettable night. At one point, the crowd started singing, ‘We love Brazil’. It was way beyond our expectations.”
His favourite local club Gremio Esportivo Brasil, who play in the fourth division, also wear red. In an Instagram post later, he said: “Rain, 3C cold, and two great goals filled us with joy. But what made this day eternal was the immense warmth with which we were received.
“Perhaps I’ll hear, ‘We love Brazil’ chanted by our fellow fans until the end of my days. We thought we chose Accrington because of the shirt’s colour, but we were wrong. We chose them because we had brothers in Lancashire.
“Many thanks to club officials who opened the doors of the home that is now ours too.
“And I thank my children and my girl for their complicity in our madness.”
Perhaps I’ll hear ‘We love Brazil’ until the end of my days
FABRICIO ACCRINGTON FAN ON WARM RECEPTION