The defender on loan from Barça wants to recover the version he kept at Wénger’s Arsenal
The Catalan has already played 4 games with Sporting de Portugal, one of them in the Europa League
Swift on the field and elegant off it, Spanish winger Héctor Bellerín has reached the Sporting of Portugal to relaunch his career and recover the dynamism he showed in the Arsenal.
Fashion aficionado and activist of various social causes, bellerin has before him a new challenge, this time in Portuguese lands, where he has arrived on loan from Barcelona until the end of the season. The right side of 27 years replaces his compatriot Pedro Porrowho has signed for him Tottenham.
This Monday he was one of the most active elements in the Sporting win 3-2 against Chaves and showed that he fits perfectly into the profile sought by the “lions”. His speed, his technique and his aggressiveness on the right wing make him a winger with offensive properties who can also provide solidity in the rear.
The Spanish was extreme when he started at La Masía, but when he left Barça for Arsenal, he placed himself in defense and in his game he usually combines both facets. An advantage for the Sporting coach, Ruben Amorimwho usually uses a system based on three central defenderswith the most advanced full-backs on the grass.
From Barcelona to London
Héctor Bellerín Moruno (Badalona, 1995) he trained at La Masia between 2006 and 2011when he began what would be a long stage in the Arsenal. His opportunity in the first team of the “Gunners” came in 2013 but the player considers that the “true turning point” of his career was his exhibition in a friendly against the Portuguese Benfica (5-1). He then earned the trust of the legendary French coach Arsene Wenger and scored with Arsenal three Cups and three English Super Cups.
With SpainBellerín was included in the call for the Euro 2016, but did not play. In 2019, a torn cruciate ligament sidelined him for 9 months and precipitated his transfer, two years later, to Betis, where he won the Copa del Rey and fulfilled his father’s dream of seeing him play for his team.
returned this season to FC Barcelonahis youth home, but failed to gain a foothold in Xavi’s schemes.
The most “sustainable” footballer
bellerin He is also distinguished by his passion for fashion, his tenacious defense of the environment and his social activism. He walked the runway at Paris Fashion Week for Louis Vuitton and launched a collection, based on sustainability, with the Swedish chain H&Mamong other projects.
The defense of the planet led him to invest in the Forest Green Rovers, a team from the lower divisions of England and considered the “greenest” in the world. He was also one of the first soccer players in adopt a vegan diet; he advocates that his elite colleagues should pay more taxes and tries to combat the stigma of mental illness in the profession.
About this facet of his, the Sporting manager recently said that he “brings a different form” to the team. “Off the field he can be as he wants, that brings more grace to the group,” said Amorim.