Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Boy from Brazil loves new life at Montrose
MATHEUS Machado’s journey from the heart of the bustling Brazilian city of Sao Paulo to Montrose is quite incredible.
At the age of 17, Machado’s life changed overnight when his dad Roger secured a new job working for Royal Mail in Inverness and moved to Scotland.
Six months later, the Machado family uprooted from the fifth biggest city in the world to the relative tranquillity of the Scottish Highlands.
They left behind a city of 22 million people for a country that has a quarter of the population and is awash with green space.
But while he left his friends and family behind in Brazil, Machado was determined to take one thing with him – his football. After spells at Inverness, Elgin City and Rothes – with a pitstop in Portugal in between – Machado feels he’s found home in Montrose.
The midfielder has also, ironically, discovered a love of sea and sand in Angus – so often associated with life in Brazil.
“Everyone talks to me like I’ve been on the beach my whole life,” said Machado, 21.
“But the truth is I’ve been to the beach more often here than I ever was back home.
“When I lived in Brazil we were in the middle of a big city, one of the biggest in the world.
“There is no beach in the centre of Sao Paulo. Every time we wanted to go to one we’d have to drive two hours to go up north to the bigger nicer beaches.
“But here? I now live in Arbroath and there is a beach five minutes away. In Inverness we had one within 10 or 15 minutes. It’s super easy to get to the beach.
“Beaches are also different here. In Brazil they are full of people selling things, dads playing keepyups with their kids, full-on games with goals or foot volley nets.
“Here you can go to the beach and chill. I like that.”
Machado speaks in glowing terms about the new life he has discovered since the big move to Europe in 2019.
A product of Red Bull Brasil’s youth academy, Machado dreamed of making the grade alongside the Samba superstars.
But when the chance of move to Scotland came up for his family, he was willing to give up on that dream. It’s a move that has worked out well for his family.
Matheus is taking the first step towards a career in accountancy or business marketing, while working at McDonald’s and starring for Montrose.
Mum Silvia is studying and dad Roger works in marketing in the oil and gas industry, while little brother Rafael studies Economics at St Andrews University.
Machado netted his first Montrose strike in the 2-1 win at Kelty Hearts on Saturday.
And while the midfielder already has his own Links Park fan club, with Brazilian flags on show at the Mo, he wants to make an even bigger impact on the pitch.
“Since my first game the fans have brought Brazil flags into the ground. It’s nice to see.”