Soccer

FROM growing up in a ‘cave’ to saving people as a lifeguard, the life of Vitor Pereira has not been plain sailing.But from treading water when he arrived, the Wolves boss is on the crest of a wave after leading them to Prem safety.Vitor Pereira took charge of Wolves in December 2018Credit: GETTYThe Portuguese has guided the early-season strugglers to Premier League safetyCredit: PAPereira came from the most humble of beginnings in seaside PortugalCredit: GETTYThe popular Portuguese has become a cult hero in Wolverhampton for the amazing turnaround he has inspired.But his status has been sealed just as much for sinking celebratory pints with fans in the city centre Wetherspoon’s Moon Under Water after games.Sitting in his club tracksuit, Pereira is sipping a pint of Japanese lager Asahi at The Inn at Shipley, eight miles west of Molineux, while holding court with the media.Where else but a boozer for the man whose catchphrase ‘First the points, then the pints’? now booms around Molineux? READ MORE FOOTBALL NEWS”In the moments of celebration, you need to see the smiles. This is my energy,” he said.”In Wolverhampton, I must go to a pub, because this is the culture and where people go. This is our life.” His strength comes from his tough upbringing in Espinho, a small fishing village 10 miles south of Porto.”I’m a man of the sea. I grew up on the beach,” said Pereira, whose favourite tipple is Stella.Most read in FootballJOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUSVitor Pereira has become a beloved figure in the Black CountryCredit: REX”My house was 50 metres from the beach. At the time, my father didn’t have money so we lived in a cave – underground.”Every winter the sea came strong, without barriers, for three months, so there was water inside.Premier League clash descends into farce as VAR counts number of players”We had to rebuild the house. Every time there was water in the walls, and a bad smell. I felt ashamed because my clothes smelt.”You felt wet every time, but that was our life.”It was a very humble village with fishermen. We grew up on the street, fighting together.”But this is what I have inside of me. This is the power.”My friends are all from 50 years ago. I go there and I feel like I’m home.”I belong there, that is my space – in front of the sea, with my beer, my paper and a pen. This is what I like.” Life remained hard for Pereira, but a fierce work ethic helped him make his way in the world.”Since I was 16, I never asked for one euro from my parents,” he said.”I did small jobs to get money to go to discos. On Saturday mornings, I was a lifeguard on the beach.”They paid me a lot of money. And I saved a lot of people.”I had no worries – just to play football.”I went to university, did small jobs, and I started to save, from 18. I’m now 56. But my sons will spend the money, don’t worry!” Pereira, an amateur midfielder who never played pro, taught PE. But he felt he was always destined to manage.”When I played, I was a coach inside the pitch, shouting ‘Do this, do that’,” he recalled.”But when the ball came to my feet, the mind said one thing but the feet another! “I had a career, in the third division in Portugal. But I got money to do my course, go to university, buy my car and clothes.” Pereira has won titles with Porto, Olympiacos and Shanghai. But the glamour of travelling the world as a football coach has its downsides – like missing his three sons grow up.Now he admits he is a stranger when he goes home.”I have three sons: 28 – I hope I’m not wrong – 26 and 24,” he said.”This is difficult to speak about because for the last 15 years, my wife has been the father and the mother.”I didn’t see anything – birthdays and graduations – because now they have finished university. I have never been there.”I don’t want my sons in football because it’s impossible to have a family life.” But like a junkie craving his next hit, Pereira goes cold turkey without the Beautiful Game.”Football is like a passion and a drug – I cannot live without it,” he admits.”After one month, I get nervous. I cannot enjoy anything.”Before, I said to my wife, this is my opportunity to build the life for my sons.”But because I earned a lot of money, she asked me, ‘now it’s for what? It’s for you. Since the beginning, it’s been for you.”Sometimes I went home, and it’s like ‘where are my clothes?’ I don’t know where the knife or fork are. I change my house every time, the car.”When we have lunch or dinner, they start to talk but my mind is on football.Football is always on the mind of Vitor Pereira, even when he’s at the pubCredit: GETTYHe doesn’t go to the pub for the pints, he goes for the fans”I’m thinking about the problem I need to solve, and they are talking about things I don’t understand.”It’s like the personality of my sons has changed, and I didn’t realise it.”So football is not only about good things. We suffer a lot.” Personal loss has also caused Pereira suffering.”I cannot speak about this because I don’t want to cry,” he said.”When I arrived in Brazil, I went to Corinthians. They have 55 million supporters.”When I met the press, they asked, ‘Vitor, you don’t feel the pressure?’ “The pressure was when my father had cancer, my brother was dying, and my mother was crying.” If Pereira has struggled to connect with his own family, he certainly knows the value of building links with players and fans.”Connecting the people – me with the players, the players with the supporters, and the community with the city, is more important than the tactical idea,” he said.”There are big clubs in this country. We are in a small city.”If I go to the city centre, everybody knows me and this is our power.”We can make the difference because we are in a small area, and if we are connected, if we don’t lose our energy, if we don’t commit mistakes, we can do fantastic things together.”When I go to a pub, I like the beer but I go to be with the people, to feel I’m doing something to make them happy and proud.” Second bottom of the table having leaked 40 goals in 16 games, Wolves fans were drowning their sorrows when he arrived.The glass was very much half empty.But Pereira was always confident of turning pints into points from Day One after replacing Gary O’Neil.Vitor Pereira took charge of Wolves last DecemberCredit: AFPPereira replaced the sacked Gary O’NeilCredit: AP”I used to say if I go to the pitch for one training session, you will see the difference,” he said.”Nobody can work without confidence. We had to rebuild it.”We had a meeting with the players and started work from the first day on our identity.”The tactical idea is very clear. It took one training session.”After two days, they understood. We felt the enthusiasm in training.” Back-to-back wins against Leicester and Man United lifted Wolves out of the drop zone and he hasn’t looked back.”I will not change my game to play against another team, at home or away,” he vowed.”I like to create things. Every time I go to a club, creating a style of play is like taking a baby in my arms and helping him to grow.”If I wasn’t a manager, I would be something like an architect or a painter.”It’s like I start a new painting. I plan the training sessions, and I need to create every day because if I don’t, I start to become unbalanced.” Pereira is sometimes so much ‘in the zone’ he misses Wolves’ goals.”Sometimes when I’m in the game it’s like I’m playing PlayStation,” he said.”If we are in the offensive midfield, I’m looking to see if my players are in position to react when we lose the ball.”Sometimes I don’t see our goals because I’m looking at the opposition. I’m taking notes because I want to help us.” Pereira is making small beer of managing in the Prem. If Wolves win at Man City on Friday night, it will equal a club record seven straight top-flight victories achieved in 1946.But considering his route to finally arriving in England at the age of 56, it’s little wonder he is celebrating – after being approached by SIX Prem clubs.”The first was West Bromwich, in the Premier League, maybe 15 years ago,” he recalled.”The second? Everton. Third? Crystal Palace with the proposal, with a contract for two and a half years.I will not change my game to play against another team, at home or awayVitor Pereira”Then they changed the idea, but I realised that’s normal here.”After that, Chelsea, then Everton again, then Arsenal. I had a long, very good meeting with Arsenal before they signed Mikel Arteta.”Then a third interview with Everton. With Everton, the contract was agreed to start tomorrow. My bags were packed.”But it was a case of ‘check in, check out’ for one week.”Watford was the only time I said no. They were relegated.” So when the wolf came to the door, he was not about to slam it shut.”When I looked at Wolverhampton, we said, ‘it’s not difficult – they have quality’,” he insisted. “This was not a team to go down.”I’m very grateful to this club because they gave me the chance to be in the league I believe gives me the opportunity to be at my best level.”I feel I’m in the place you want to be all my life.”Maybe I was not ready before, and now is the time and this is the club.”I stayed three years in China, I went to Saudi twice, and twice to Fenerbahce.”Brazil and Turkey are very difficult to succeed in and Greece is not easy because the emotion is high.”But it all gave us the background and the experience to come here. I’m prepared.” Those experiences fuelled Pereira’s ambition and he does not intend to be battling to keep their heads above water again.Vitor Pereira has guided Wolves to Premier League safety in his maiden season in English footballCredit: GETTY”I didn’t come to England just to avoid relegation,” he said. “If you look at my career, this is not my record.”At a smaller club, we cannot make mistakes (in the transfer market).”If we make the right steps next season, we can be mid-table. After, we can make another step forward.”If possible, I want to keep almost the whole squad.”There will be players who want to move, so we need to have honest conversations.”Because it’s a smaller club it’s easier to work as we connect with everyone every day.”After, with the supporters, we can do very important things.”The pressure is what I put on myself, because I want my team playing strong, beautiful football, winning games.”If I’m in the right place to challenge me, I can do magic.” Pereira is open to star player Matheus Cunha staying, even though Man United are ready to meet the 17-goal striker’s £62.5m release clause.But he is more focused on Wolves being better next season, whether the brilliant Brazilian is there or not.”I don’t know if he’ll stay,” said the boss. “But we need to know the club will move forward to build a strong team, with or without Cunha. You cannot build a club around a player.” Wolves have lost their captains in each of the last three summers in Conor Coady, Ruben Neves and Maximilian Kilman.Now Pereira is sweating on skipper Nelson Semedo, 31, with his fellow Portuguese out of contract.Read More on The Sun”I hope Nelson stays,” he said. “He’s very important for the group.”But it’s his family life and if he decides to move, we need to find another good man.” More