(ZENIT News / Rome, 03.27.2024).- The Italian newspaper Corriere della sera published an interview with soccer player Rafael Leao who denied rumors about his religion.
Rafael Leao is a Portuguese soccer player of Angolan descent who at the age of 24 has become one of the most outstanding players of the Milan soccer team. He began to gain popularity after the World Cup in Qatar, where he scored goals against Ghana and Switzerland.
In the interview he is asked if he has a relationship with God or why he often looks at the sky when he plays, to which he replies that he «has a very close relationship with God, I am a believer, Catholic, although some people thought I was a Muslim perhaps because of the color of my skin and my African origins. Before I always went to mass on Sundays. Now it’s harder for me because there are games. Prayer is part of my life”.
In the interview he also discusses other topics such as his love for music, fashion and the beauty of soccer, which he relates to the other two. He mentions that he likes to score beautiful goals, to play like children having fun, not just as a job. He underlines that soccer «is the joy of children playing in the streets, all over the world».
From a question about his Instagram profile, where he has almost 6 million followers, he says that «social media is dangerous, it is not a positive world. Too much hate, too much malice. The things I know I didn’t learn them there, I use social media because I need them for my work, but I don’t like them. There are few smiles in social media».
Rafa is also the author of a book called «Smile». In that book he talks about his own life: «I would like to explain to my fans who I really am and why I smile» he pointed out.
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