A boy of just ten years of age has attracted attention in the youth teams of the Athletico. Left-handed, skilled, refined, intelligent and decisive dribbling. These are some of the characteristics of Davi Lucca Barbosa considered a jewel of Hurricane.
Videos of his moves have gone viral on social media. When going through the posts on the boy’s profile, which already has more than 4 thousand followers and is managed by his parents, you can see the amount of praise in the style of “crack”, “phenomenon”, “Messinho da Baixada“, “golden boy”, “future of football”. At home, his affectionate nickname is Davizinho.
Paulo Henrique Barbosa, father of David
We always posted something, since he started training. But the profile exploded after the channel Futefalado, who is very famous in the youth categories, made a video of him. We see the comments, people saying “phenomenon”, “the new Messi is not Argentine”.
“But, in the same way, there are people who comment “nothing will come of it”, “come face my son and see”. The internet gives people a lot of voice, especially bad people, but we try to shield them as best we can” .
First steps in Coritiba and Athletico’s proposal
Always precocious, the lefty started taking his first steps at 11 months old and, since then, the ball has been his favorite toy. When he turned five, his father, seeing his son’s potential, sent him to a football school.
Davi Lucca started training at a partner school of Coritiba, in Pinhais, in 2019. But, when the pandemic came, training took place at home. After the situation normalized, it didn’t take long for the coaches to ask for the boy’s return. Davizinho then started training in futsal and the field at Coxa, always with boys two or three years older.
“It was at the end of 2021 when Davi started training even at high performance, he played the whole of 2022 and was already selected for the Coritiba base. He was the youngest boy at the Coxa base, aged seven. The base there only begins in under-11. In the same year, he played for Paranaense in futsal, then he started training once a week at Coritiba until we received the offer from Athletico”, explains Paulo.
Davi Lucca was captured by the former coach of the women’s team, Brenno Basso, who invited the family to meet CT do Caju after seeing him in action in a Paranaense match.
“We analyzed the plan and the Furacão project was much better. Especially because at Coxa, he only trained once a week on the field and played futsal for partner schools”, explains the father.
In the same period, an invitation came to close a partnership with the company R13 Fussball, which manages the careers of athletes such as goalkeeper Léo Linck, defender Léo Pereira and full-back Rafinha, for example.
“It was a friend of mine who said Davi would come up, so we went to watch one of his games. When I saw him, I really realized how out of the box, how different he is. The company didn’t have boys that young, he was one of the first at that age. Due to the profile, quality, especially because it is a long period of monitoring. We are looking for more boys from the youth teams, but we only have Davi and one other of his age, the rest are over 14 years old”, says the agency representative, Jonathan Cardoso.
Heavy routine, regulated diet and professional pressure
With the agreement with Athletico and partnership with the career management company, the responsibilities of the future athlete also increased. Davi Lucca has a heavy routine, balancing school with training and championships.
Captain of the team, the little one plays as a winger in football games and on the right wing in Athletico’s futsal, alternating between shirts 7, 10 and 11.
“It’s a very busy routine. He goes to school early, but he always leaves a little early. He comes home for lunch and has to be at the Ligga Arena at 1:10 pm to catch the bus, which takes the boys to CT. Then, the The bus brings you to the stadium at 6pm. When you get home, you have to take a shower, have dinner and still do your homework”, says the father.
The routine changes a little on game days. What doesn’t change is the regular diet, with little sweets and soft drinks, for example. In addition, good grades in regular school are a requirement of Athletico. Davizinho guarantees that he only gets good grades: “only above nine”.
In CT, Furacão complements regular education with psychological support and human development classes. In larger categories, the club also offers English classes.
In addition to a routine similar to that of a professional athlete, the pressure already affects those who still have a long way to go.
Paulo Henrique Barbosa, father of David
Nowadays this issue of pressure is becoming increasingly precocious. We have to shield, protect him in every way. This is too hard. Sometimes they talk about a phenomenon, it is more targeted in games, but it is still a child. We talk a lot at home, we leave a lot to God, but we want him to have fun.
The mother of precocious athletic talent Ana Áurea highlights her concern about the boy’s health. “I get very nervous, especially in games, because they always hurt him. He ends up being targeted a lot. His little leg always gets really hurt,” she says.
“What keeps me firm is that he likes it. When traveling, of course we trust the club and always follow up, but we wonder if he is eating well, brushing his teeth, taking a shower. But I know it’s for his development . And we buy into the fight. I’m the part that is most worried. But, if it works out to be a player, the pressure will always be there. adds.
Davi Lucca: dreams and inspirations in football
If on the field Davi Lucca shows a lot of skill, with words the little one is still very shy. Passionate about football, he says that, when he is not training, he plays football at home with his sister, Alana, plays football on video games and on his cell phone, and always watches games on television.
And the boy’s dreams are high. “My dream is to play and win the Champions League and the Ballon d’Or. For Athletico, I want to be a professional and become an idol, first and foremost. When I watch the games, I always think that in a few days it could be me in the Arena”, projects Davizinho, which is inspired by Neymar and Ronaldinho Gaucho especially due to the dribbling and ball control of the players.