"Was a clause in the contract that" - Matheus Pereira makes West Brom claim | OneFootball

Matheus Pereira has opened up about his time with West Bromwich Albion, how he felt when he was first told about the move, what he enjoyed about his time there, and life afterwards.

The creative Brazilian arrived in the midlands in August 2019. It was one of many loans that he had gone on since graduating into Sporting Lisbon's first team. But the amount of temporary moves that he had away from the Portuguese side was a reflection of his standing in the club.

He did have a good season with Sporting just two campaigns prior to him joining Albion on loan, but the seven goals and five assists in 27 league matches weren't enough to convince the hierachy at the club to keep him involved, and he was shipped off to FC Nürnberg, where he was a bit of a dud signing.

Who would have thought that the young Brazilian would have found his place in the footballing world at the Hawthorns, but that's how things fell into place. And, based on his comments, he certainly didn't expect too much from it.

Matheus Pereira on his time with West Brom

The 27-year-old, who is now back playing in his home country for Cruzeiro, spoke to the Brazilian form of The Player's Tribune. In his interview, he revealed how the news of yet another loan move away from Sporting crushed him.

He said: "They wanted to loan me. I collapsed again. That weight, that feeling that the world is against you, that difficulty breathing, that certainty that you’re useless.

"The achievements – and I had many, despite everything – meant nothing to me. I just sank. It’s no use: I’m this guy who keeps dripping from one side to the other and doesn’t get anywhere.

He added that the reason why the news of another temporary stint outside of the Portuguese capital came as such a body-blow was because he felt that he could have a great season for the club.

Pereira also touched on the difficulties that he had with drugs and alcohol during the early days of being in Portugal, before he realised the changes that he would have to make to become a professional player.

The attacking midfielder said that, even though he wasn't happy with the deal, at first, he went for it because of the disgruntled feeling he had towards his parent club.

"I ended up playing in the second division, but in England," said Pereira. "My new club was West Bromwich. Although it was yet another change, and I was fed up with [Sporting], I jumped at the chance.

"The project was very good – and financially too. There was a clause in the contract that obliged the club to buy me for a lot of money if I played 30 games or if the team went up to the Premier League. Both things happened.

"It was my best professional moment."

After just two seasons with the Baggies, in which he scored 19 goals and provided 22 assists in 75 league appearances, he was sold to Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal, following West Brom's relegation back to the Championship.

Pereira talked about the struggles that he had after leaving the club in 2021, for £16 million, as per the Birmingham Mail. "I was afraid of what this new change would do to my head, but it was very good financially," said the 27-year-old.

"I spoke to my wife and we decided to accept it. It didn’t take long for the psychological decline to reappear. There isn’t always a specific cause, I think it’s more the whole of a lifetime, but living in Riyadh, I missed my church.

"In West Bromwich we were part of a small Christian community and that strengthened me, I was supported. In Saudi Arabia, there was none.

"I also began to miss my parents and couldn’t find a way to get back in touch with them. Then one day I woke up and darkness had settled over my soul."

Thankfully, he seems to have gotten through this tough period of his life, and is happy to be back in Brazil. His move to Cruzeiro is only a loan one, but they have the option to buy him, as per .

Matheus Pereira is a perfect example of how circumstance is key to the success of a footballer

Unfortunately for the fans of the Baggies, the circumstances that they were under for the majority of Pereira's time with the club meant that they couldn't watch him live. Covid-19 restrictions meant that most of the games in the 2020/21 campaign were played behind closed doors.

For Pereira, the circumstances at the time worked out really well for him. He finally found a home in professional football, even if it was just for a brief period of his career.

His move to West Brom has ended up being a very good one for him, financially, as per his own admission, but he has seemingly come to the realisation that wages aren't the be all and end all of life.

There was obviously a player there, but his case shows that it's not just about talent, or even work rate, sometimes. It's about how you feel in a place.

For that two-year period, everything clicked for him. He was happy with where he was in his life, and Albion were certainly happy to have him.