Alisson Becker has revealed that Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola sent him a message of condolence after the sudden death of his father in February 2021.
Jose Becker died tragically after drowning in a lake near his parental home. Alisson was unable to attend the funeral in his home country due to travel restrictions to prevent the spread of coronavirus.
In an emotional piece in the players' stands, Alisson said that his father's death “destroyed” him and revealed that he needed the support of his Liverpool teammates to get through it.
“When he died, it destroyed me. I couldn't even think about football. I had to remember that I even played football and that we fought for the top 4, “he wrote.
'It was even more complicated, because it was in the middle of the pandemic, and the logistics of coming home was a nightmare.
“My wife was pregnant with our third child and Covid again exploded in Brazil. Her doctor said it was risky for her to travel, so she had to stay with our children in Liverpool. That was total fear of her because she loved my father so much.
“We always made jokes that he loved her the most. If we ever disagreed a bit for my father, he would always say: 'I think Natalia is right. She was the daughter he had never had. I should only fly to Brazil.
“The next two or three days were a blur. The next thing I remember were all the flowers that came to our house. Van Virgil, Andy, Fabinho, Firmino, Thiago…. so on. All my brothers. Everyone sent us flowers with a note of condolences.
'And not only from my teammates, but even Pep Guardiola and Carlo Ancelotti sent me a condolence letter. It really touched my heart. Every 10 minutes there was another knock on our door, with a delivery person who held flowers.
'I don't think those people can understand how much something small that means when you suffer. It was a memory that even your greatest rivals recognize the person behind the name on the kit.
'I will never forget it, Jurgen called me and I felt so guilty about missing training, because we were outside the top 4 and we needed every point. But Jurgen said I had to take as much time as I needed. '
After the death of his father, Alisson missed Liverpool's 2-0 victory over Sheffield United before they returned for their last 12 games when they rushed to a Champions League place. The stop was an integral part of the successful attempt by the Reds and even scored a dramatically winning goal against West Bromwich Albion in May.
It was an emotional moment for the Brazilian, which was embraced by his teammates after his heroic deeds. The stop claimed that if he was not for his colleagues and the club, he 'could not have been able to deal with that time'.
“When I returned to training a few days after the funeral, I would think about my father at random times,” he added.
“I would have these flashes and I would start to cry. Exactly there in training. Imagine you try to arrange the wall to stop the free kick of Trent, and you have tears that cloud your eyes! It's hard enough if you don't cry, man!
“But my teammates were incredible. They never rated me. They acted as if they were all part of my family and they were also in mourning. Being able to train again brought me a feeling of calm. I always say that I have not 'chosen' football. You cannot choose what is unconscious, what is already in your bones. '
Alisson has remained an integral part of the Reds team and has now become a double Premier League winner after confirming Liverpool as champions last weekend.