SportsNews

Thiago Alcantara’s passion for self-expression and art: ‘I love quality in things’

Published

2 years ago

February 2, 2024

Ekwutos Blog

Thiago Alcantara

It’s fitting a player who can make football look like art enjoys the creativity of others outside the sport.

Thiago Alcantara, the gifted and accomplished Liverpool midfielder, chose to give his tattoo artists the freedom to create when it came to the sleeve on his right arm.

“As I play, I see life, I love quality in things, I love quality in work in any action,” the 32-year-old tells Liverpoolfc.com in the latest of Carlsberg’s Inked series, exploring players’ tattoos and the stories behind them.

“For me it’s a great experience to try to interact with great artists and see how they work, see how are the pictures and if I want a tattoo on myself I try to think what I like most by giving a lot of room for the creativity of the artist.”

Thiago got his first tattoo the day after he turned 18 and would then add to his ‘collage’ to mark his journey through life.

In his mind, there was no question if he would ever get one.

He explains: “I came from a family where we were on the beach a lot in Brazil and loads of people have this culture for the body and most of them with tattoos. My mum has a lot as well.

“I grew up where it’s more of a self-expression of moments of life or in some situations you remember the good and bad moments or the not-so-good moments. It’s a kind of self-expression.

“I always wanted [one]. I think it’s something when you see for the first time, you say, ‘OK, I like it.’ And then your second thoughts are, ‘It suits me or not.’ There are people that love tattoos but they don’t have any because they say, ‘OK, it’s not for me.'”

The starting point of Thiago’s glittering career in Europe was cause for him to get his opening design.

Aged 14, he left home for FC Barcelona and their famed La Masia academy, with his mother’s parting words leaving a mark that is now materialised on his skin.

A line from the Brazil national anthem related to his father and a guardian angel, among others, then found a place on the dad-of-three’s tapestry of ink.

“It was a message [from] a bittersweet moment because I was leaving home but at the same time I was going to achieve my dreams,” Thiago says of his first.

“I did everything separate because you’re doing it at a young age, you’re putting everything together, doing like a kind of collage. There’s not a big harmony between but there’s a lot of things that I went through in my life and I want to express that in tattoos.”

The Reds No.6 also carries a symbol of his love of football, as someone who was born into a footballing family – with his dad, Mazinho, winning the World Cup with Brazil back in 1994.

Thiago, a bona fide winner himself, has helped the clubs he’s represented lift the Champions League, La Liga, Bundesliga, FIFA Club World Cup and Emirates FA Cup – to name the standouts – ever since making his professional debut nearly 15 years ago.

And while on the theme of permanence, football is a game he adores for its ability to imprint forever-held memories on everyone associated with it. You can leave your own mark.

“Football creates these kind of special relationships,” Thiago finishes. “We can see also in the streets that people that you never saw in your life, they treat you like it’s part of their family or it’s a friend – because they see you every three days on TV or in the stadium.

“So for us it’s to create this kind of relationship here because you spend more time with your teammates, with the staff members than most of your family members. Liverpool has a story and you’re just a small part of this big club and history.”

SportsNews

EPL: Full list of players leaving for 2025 AFCON

Published

1 day ago

December 13, 2025

Ekwutos Blog

At least 25 players in the Premier League are set to travel for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.

The tournament is scheduled to take place from December 21, 2025, to January 18, 2026.

Nigeria, Ivory Coast, DR Congo lead the way in terms of players based in the English topflight, with four selected from each club for the AFCON.

FIFA has directed clubs to release the eligible players from Monday, December 15.

Full list of players confirmed

Sunderland (5):
Chemsdine Talbi (Morocco), Reinildo (Mozambique), Bertrand Traoré (Burkina Faso), Arthur Masuaku (DR Congo), Noah Sadiki (DR Congo).

Manchester United (3):
Bryan Mbeumo (Cameroon), Amad Diallo (Ivory Coast), Noussair Mazraoui (Morocco).

Fulham (3):
Alex Iwobi (Nigeria), Calvin Bassey (Nigeria), Samuel Chukwueze (Nigeria).

Burnley (3):
Axel Tuanzebe (DR Congo), Lyle Foster (South Africa), Hannibal Mejbri (Tunisia).

Nottingham Forest (2):
Ibrahim Sangaré (Ivory Coast), Willy Boly (Ivory Coast).

Brentford (2):
Dango Ouattara (Burkina Faso), Frank Onyeka (Nigeria).

Manchester City (1):
Omar Marmoush (Egypt),

West Ham United (1):
Aaron Wan-Bissaka (DR Congo)

Wolves (2):
Tawanda Chirewa (Zimbabwe), Emmanuel Agbadou (Ivory Coast).

Brighton & Hove Albion (1):
Carlos Baleba (Cameroon).

Crystal Palace (2):
Ismaïla Sarr (Senegal), Cheick Doucouré (Mali)

Liverpool (1):
Mohammed Salah (Egypt)

SportsNews

NNL bars fans from Ranchers Bees vs Adamawa United

Published

1 day ago

December 13, 2025

Ekwutos Blog

The Nigeria National League, NNL, has announced that matchday six fixture between Ranchers Bees and Adamawa United will be played behind closed doors.

The announcement was made in a statement by the league body.

Only the State Football Association representatives, staff of both teams, kit managers and medical personnel will be allowed into the stadium.

Others are the match officials, security personnel and camera men.

The reason for the decision to play the game without club supporters wasn’t stated by the league body.

The encounter will take place at the Bako Kontagora Stadium in Minna on Saturday (today).

SportsNews

Nigeria vs Egypt Friendly Gets New Date

Published

7 days ago

December 8, 2025

Ekwutos Blog

Nigeria’s preparations for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations have taken a fresh hit, with Egypt confirming that the highly anticipated friendly between both nations has been shifted from 14 to 16 December.

The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) announced the adjustment late Friday, noting that FIFA’s updated international release directive, which allows clubs keep African players until 15 December, made the original date unworkable.

EFA Vice President Khaled El-Darandaly explained that the new rule left both Egypt and Nigeria without full squads for the initial date.

Key Pharaohs players, including Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush, are now expected to arrive only after the new release window.

Egypt had already named its 28-man provisional squad and opened camp in Cairo, with head coach Hossam Hassan accelerating final preparations for a Group B campaign that includes South Africa, Angola and Zimbabwe.

Nigeria’s disruption is more extensive. The Super Eagles were originally scheduled to open camp on 10 December and progress through a streamlined friendly schedule before departing for Morocco. That entire framework has now been dismantled.

Under the revised timeline, camp will open on 14 December, leaving Eric Chelle with barely a week to prepare before AFCON kicks off.

The venue for the friendly is also now uncertain, with Cairo no longer feasible and both federations considering shifting the match to Morocco.

Nigeria’s build-up has been further destabilised by injuries to Ola Aina, Taiwo Awoniyi, Benjamin Fredrick and Felix Agu.

The shock retirement of captain William Troost-Ekong, winner of the 2023 AFCON Player of the Tournament award, creates an additional leadership vacuum in defence.

Chelle, who released a 55-man provisional list, must now trim his squad to 28 within a compressed window. Nigeria will compete in Group C alongside Tunisia, Uganda and Tanzania as they chase a fourth continental title.