FAMILY AFFAIR FOR YOUNG RODRIGO

RODRIGO was born in Rio de Janeiro in March 1991. He relocated to Spain in his early teens when his father, Brazilian footballer Adalberto, opened a football school in Vigo alongside 1994 World Cup winner Mazinho. He is a lifelong friend of the Mazinhos’ sons Thiago Alcantara and Rafinha. The family settled in Galicia and young Rodrigo started to play for Celta de Vigo’s age group teams. When he was 18, in 2009, he moved to Real Madrid. They sold him to Benfica, who in turn sold him to Valencia in 2015.