‘Too dangerous!’ – Nani reveals one thing he refused to teach godson Angel Gomes as ex-Man Utd star prepares for first senior England games

Former Manchester United star, Nani, revealed that he would help Angel Gomes with every possible advice but never let out the secret to his backflip.

• • WHAT HAPPENED?

    Gomes, now 24, started his football career in the youth academy of Manchester United at Carrington. Despite showing early promise, Gomes struggled to establish himself as a regular member of the first team at Old Trafford and made just 10 senior appearances during his time at United. In 2020, Gomes made the difficult decision to leave England and join Lille. Soon he was loaned out to Boavista and during his time in Portugal, he reinvented himself as a more well-rounded player, which earned him a return to Lille, where he has since become an important part of the squad in France’s top division.

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      THE BIGGER PICTURE

      Nani, who has known Gomes since his early days at United, watched closely as his godson developed both on and off the pitch. As a kid, Gomes would often visit Nani’s house in Cheshire to show off the latest skill he had mastered, eager to impress his mentor. The Portuguese winger would shower him with advice on how to improve his game and the tiny boy would lap it all up.

    • • WHAT NANI SAID

        In an interview with Telegraph Sport, Nani said: “I’d ask him all the time to do some tricks with the ball and every time he wanted to show me something new. I’d always be positive with him. ‘You’ll be a superstar one day Angel’. Every time Angel needed advice I was able to give it. I always tried to teach what I think I can give to the young kids to improve their game, help them, motivate them to be even better each day. I’m happy Angel listened and took on board some of the things I said. It’s so nice to know I was with him in those early days and we had the chance to be together and enjoy those moments. He’s such a good kid.”

      • DID YOU KNOW?

        While Nani was happy to share most of his wisdom with Gomes, there was one secret he chose not to reveal: the secret behind his famous backflip celebration. Known for his acrobatic post-goal celebrations during his time at Manchester United, Nani’s backflips became an iconic part of his playing style.

        Despite Gomes’ repeated requests to learn the trick, Nani refused to teach him. “Yeah, that was too dangerous!” Nani said with a laugh. “I know how much training went into being able to do that backflip – and the costs that can be involved – so I didn’t advise him to try that!”

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          WHAT NEXT FOR GOMES?

          Gomes has been called up by Lee Carsley for England’s next two Nations League fixtures against Ireland and Finland. However, it remains to be seen if Carlsey will hand him his international debut against the Republic on Saturday evening.