serge aurier Three days after his brother was killed, he revealed that he was playing for Tottenham to help his grieving mother.
Aurier’s brother, Christopher, was shot dead outside a nightclub. France In July 2020, hours after the Ivory Coast national team’s win over Arsenal in the north London derby for the Spurs.
Less than 72 hours later, he played in a match at Newcastle and helped his team win 3-1.
Returning to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for the first time with Aurier Nottingham forest She told her mother on Saturday it was a decision she made to give hope in her darkest situation.
“I played for my mom. She needed to know that life doesn’t stop,” she said.
“We lost our beloved brother.
“But I wanted to play this game because it’s my job first and foremost. Then we have a family life.
“It was a bad moment for me, but I am strong. I wanted to say to my mother, ‘Yes, we lost my brother, but you have one more child in this life’.
“I wanted to show you, ‘This is a bad moment, but don’t worry because I’m here and I’m going to work hard again for you and my family.
“It wasn’t a good moment for me or my family but when my mom saw me running and fighting on the field, of course that wouldn’t change anything but ‘Yeah, I lost my kid but I’ll have another one that I can see on TV, he’ll run and enjoy’.
“I went home after this game and I felt like he would be happy to see me play like this.”
Aurier left Spurs in 2021 after canceling the final year of his contract, ending his four-year stay in London.
He took part in the squad that made it to the Champions League final under the management of Mauricio Pochettino. Carabao Cup under the final Jose MourinhoFired six days before the game, but ultimately unable to help the Spurs end their cup drought.
After a week of scares as they lost to Sheffield United in the FA Cup and then exited the Champions League after a 1-0 collective loss to AC Milan, they are guaranteed to enter their 16th year without silverware.
Aurier said it was never due to a lack of effort and he wanted to see his old club succeed.
“The club is under pressure, they haven’t won a trophy for a long time,” he said. “It’s hard for everyone to know. We had very good players and we didn’t get trophies.
“We went to the Champions League final and the Carabao Cup final and we didn’t win, so sometimes it’s a big disappointment for the fans.
“I understand, but don’t put everything in the same basket. We don’t just go out on the field to laugh, we have to do our best.
“I feel and understand the disappointment of the fans there. When you spend a lot of money on players, you want to get the result back. I understand and I hope they win something.
The players there deserve to win something, they work hard. I stayed there for four years. They work hard. Fans and players deserve to win something.
“They always tried their best. Don’t give up. There will be time to gain something. But they just need to believe and not give up.”