Four years ago, the existence of Reinildo Mandava in European football was non-existent. At 24, the Mozambican had failed to break out and was looking to make a living in a country where poverty abounds. It was in 2015 when, by surprise, Benfica knocked on their doors and, based on work and sacrifice, the winger ended up becoming a decisive player in the Ligue 1 champion last season, Lille.
To understand Reinildo’s style of play, characterized by not giving a single ball for lost and for being an imposing player in defensive duels, we must go back to everything that has happened in his sports career. At the age of 14, the future Atlético de Madrid player made his debut with the Beira Railway Company, before signing his first professional contract at the age of 18. He barely earned 29 euros a month, 2,000 metrics in Mozambican currency, half of his money going to his mother.as recounted in a great article by L’Equipe published two years ago.
In 2015, Reinildo went to Maputo, capital of Mozambican. He never made his debut in the Muslim League with the city team and Benfica signed him, giving him a five-year professional contract. A year later he left on loan to Fafe and then went to Sporting Covilha in 2017/2018.
Undoubtedly, Reinildo’s rise came in the 2018-19 season, the year in which he joined Os Belenenses and in which an unpublished story happens to him. On the eve of a match against Porto, a friend of his called him telling him that on a page they said that he was going to sign for Lille. In January 2019, the Mozambican signed until 2022 with the Bulldogs, being a total unknown to European footballbut, as he already demonstrated in Mozambique, establishing himself as a fundamental player in the shadows based on hours of work.
A decisive explosion for Lille
Reinildo did not have a hopeful start at Lille. Bradaric’s great performance at left back left him practically unnoticed during the first months of competition. However, as of the 2020-21 season, the Mozambican took advantage of the opportunities he had and nobody moved him from the starting lineup again. Lille were proclaimed champions of Ligue 1 and one of the reasons why it was one of the defenses with the fewest goals in the championship is due to its extraordinary defensive level shown by the upcoming addition of Atlético de Madrid on the left wing.
If there is something that should be highlighted about Reinildo, it is the extraordinary defensive capacity that he has. It is the weapon that has boosted him to ownership in Lille and is one of the reasons why Atlético de Madrid signed him. It has a timing extraordinary to endure duels and always knows how and when to put his foot. There are hardly many players who can beat him today in one-on-one and that spectacular defensive level too They have caused Gourvennec’s team to access, for the first time since 2005, the knockout stages of the Champions League.
Physique, in addition to the high percentage of duels he wins per game, is another of the attributes that most define Reinildo Mandava. It is a whirlwind on the left wing. He has no brake. That is to say, although he has technical limitations to get the ball or to assist from the band, that insistence to join the attack and quickly recover position makes him be an added value when facing home and away matches or at the highest level both in La Liga and in European competitions.
Reinildo’s great deficit is, of course, the little technique he has to combine or to center. He is a footballer who plays at exorbitant speeds and does not have that pause or that interpretation of the game to be in teams that dominate through possession of the ball. Ligue 1 has come in handy for the Mozambican, as Lille was characterized last season by being a team that fell back for a long time in 4-4-2 and, in the Champions League, the northerners were also a team that had no problem giving possession to the rival.
He has been able to compensate for this technical deficit with the power to join the attack or by how little he tries to make plays in which he is aware that he is not going to come out a winner. In attack he lavishes quite a lot, but he usually takes advantage of his power in most cases to overwhelm rivals. He is not a player who stands out for dribbling, but he is not out of place either due to his powerful lower body.
In short, Atlético de Madrid has tied a incorporation that, a priori, arrives to strengthen the defensive level of the team, one of Simeone’s signs that have collapsed so far this season. Reinildo is an intense player, who does not lose concentration during the 90 minutes and whose effort and commitment have been rewarded in recent years.
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