Boys and girls who play football mostly dream of signing and representing some of the world’s biggest clubs. It was the same with Fabio Coentrao, who dreamed of a Real Madrid shirt as a teenager, and that dream came true at the age of 23.As the champion of Portugal with Benfica, he arrived at the Santiago Bernabeu for 40 million USD and climbed to the top of Europe and the world twice with Los Blancos. Truth be told, he wasn’t a starter, but he was a significant member of Real Madrid for several seasons until he went on a couple of loans, first to Monaco and then to Sporting Lisbon.And then a massive surprise – at the age of ‘just’ 30, he terminated his contract with Real and returned to his hometown of Rio Ave.##EDITORS_CHOICE##He signed a one-season contract during which he collected 11 yellow and two red cards in 21 games. He announced the end of his career in January 2020, but returned in October, again as a player of the club where he grew up. However, he could not save Rio Ave from relegation and decided to definitely hang up his football boots.An even bigger surprise came – he did not, like some of his colleagues, go after a coaching job to spend millions he earned on travels and entertainment – he replaced the football pitch for the sea. He decided to fulfill another of his boyhood dreams, and dedicated himself to fishing.”My father had a fishing boat and I often went with him. I was often around fishing I enjoyed it. When he had time or was on vacation, we would always go on a boat. I am happy there and that is the life I want to live: the sea and the ship”, said the former member of the Portuguese national team, born in the fishing village of Vila do Conde on the coast of Atlantic.Sun, 16.00: (6.25) GETAFE (3.80) REAL MADRID (1.65)Coentrao bought the first fishing boat while playing for Real and invested close to 3 million USD in its renovation. Today there are three fishing boats and 45 employed fishermen.”Life at sea is nothing to be ashamed of, as many people think. It is a job like any other. And not only that, the sea is beautiful and we need it. That is why those who work on ships should be respected as well as people of other professions “, the Portuguese believes and adds that fishing is a promising job for future generations.The former left-back had the goal of owning an entire fleet of fishing boats by the age of 40.Spanish top tier heads towards pausing the season due to Covid”At the age of 15, I dreamed of a Real Madrid shirt, and now I want to have ten of my own ships by the age of 40,” reveals the 33-year-old Portuguese.By the way, one of Coentrao’s ships, Victoria Coentrao, named after his daughter, was in the center of attention in 2018 when the crew rescued 15 fishermen from a sinking ship. They were the fastest to respond to the call for help and reached their colleagues who were already in lifeboats.
