New beginning: T&T’s Andre Raymond at home with St Johnstone after jail-time disrupted opportunity with SC Braga

By Sports Desk July 23, 2024
RAYMOND...I felt like giving up football again, to be honest. RAYMOND...I felt like giving up football again, to be honest. Photos: SNS

Trinidad and Tobago's Andre Raymond knows all too well that opportunities in football often come with their fair share of challenges and setbacks. Though those setbacks are sometimes harrowing, much like his jail-time experience in Portugal, Raymond, like the professional he is, has learned to smile in the face of adversity.

In fact, it is Raymond's resilience and determination that ensured a bad situation took a positive turn and brought him back on track to pursue his professional dreams, as he recently signed with St Johnstone in the Scottish Premiership, where he had an encouraging start in a 2-0 win over Morton on Saturday.

“I was very happy with my debut. I needed to get some minutes in the tank and build a bond with the team and the intensity was really high—it was really good,” said Raymond, whose last competitive outing was a friendly international against Guyana in May.

“I didn’t know the coach [Craig Levein] had asked Dan [Phillips] about me. Then, in March, I got a phone call saying he was interested. He’d done some research and liked what he saw, so things started moving then. I made my mind up straight away; I wanted to join St Johnstone because the Scottish league is a top league,” he told The Courier.

Prior to his move to Scotland, Raymond, whose speed, defensive acumen, and ability to contribute offensively made him a sought-after player, caught the eye of scouts from various clubs, including SC Braga, one of Portugal’s top football teams.

The opportunity to sign with Braga seemed like the perfect next step in Raymond’s burgeoning career. However, his aspirations were abruptly halted by an unexpected turn of events.

During his trip to finalize the deal with SC Braga, Raymond was detained by Portuguese authorities for overstaying on a previous visit. This oversight resulted in him being thrown into prison for two days.

“I was at university in America and did one semester. While I was at home, my friend was going with an academy team to Spain. I was dropping him off at the airport, and the coach of his team asked me what I was doing and why I wasn’t playing football and going with them,” Raymond recalled.

“He wanted me to go with them, so he spoke to my dad about it, but my mom was saying, ‘No way, you have to go back to school,” he shared.

In the end, Raymond managed to persuade his parents, and a few days later, he joined the Academy team in Spain for the tournament.

“After that, we went to Portugal, and I ended up with Braga, but then some stuff happened—I got arrested because we’d been away from home for so long, and I ended up staying for four months instead of three. I went back home to get my documents and then back to Portugal for pre-season with Braga, but they didn’t let me in and threw me in jail,” Raymond explained.

“I was in there for two days; it was horrible. I was allowed a 15-minute phone call and locked in a cell. I know it was only two days, but that was enough. It was a new experience, that’s for sure, and I wouldn’t want anyone to go through it,” he added.

The detention not only affected Raymond personally but also jeopardized his professional prospects. The deal with SC Braga fell through as the club, wary of the legal complications, decided not to proceed.

For Raymond, it was a devastating blow, as the young defender was on the brink of a significant career milestone.

“They sent me back to Trinidad, and I had to spend three months out of Europe before I could go back. But, because of the length of time it was, Braga had moved on and signed another left-back, and that left me without a club.

“I felt like giving up football again, to be honest, but I got the chance to sign for Vilar De Perdizes, so I decided to do that. My mom wanted me to go back to school, but my dad said I should push on and keep going,” Raymond revealed.

Through resilience and his father’s unwavering support, the now 23-year-old continued to push and inevitably caught the attention of St Johnstone through a timely referral from his Soca Warriors teammate Dan Phillips.

Now a part of the St Johnstone squad, Raymond is eager to leverage his skills and experiences to help the Perth-based club succeed while continuing to develop as a player.

“I spent the last few months of the season watching the team play, looking at the players, the style of play, and the atmosphere in the stadium. All the time I was speaking to the manager and hoping they would stay in the Premiership, and I was very happy that they did,” Raymond said.

“I wanted Dan to stay, but he has goals and aspirations of his own. We still speak a lot. He told me to come here because it’s a good club and I would fit in here. He said that my style of play would match up with Scottish football, and I’m feeling that too because I like to defend, but I also like to get forward,” he ended.

Related items

  • Rodgers enjoying 'exciting period' as Celtic open gap at top of Scottish Premiership Rodgers enjoying 'exciting period' as Celtic open gap at top of Scottish Premiership

    Brendan Rodgers says it is an "exciting period" for Celtic as they moved three points clear at the top of the Scottish Premiership with a 4-1 win over Hearts.

    Celtic made a sluggish start to the match and were lucky not to find themselves behind at the break as Blair Spittal and Lawrence Shankland spurned glorious chances for Hearts.

    However, they came out revitalised in the second half as Kyogo Furuhashi and Nicolas Kuhn scored twice in five minutes to put them 2-0 up on the hour mark.

    Adam Idah scored twice, netting on either side of Musa Drammeh's consolation, with his second coming from the penalty spot in the 94th minute.

    Celtic have now won all seven of their away league games this season by an aggregate score of 22-2.

    After Aberdeen's first loss of the season earlier on Saturday, Celtic gave themselves some breathing space at the top of the league, while also moving 11 points clear of rivals Rangers, who sit third.

    Rodgers was delighted with Celtic's response to the first half, praising the players' adaptation.

    "I'm really pleased. Tynecastle is a really tough place so to win 4-1 was really pleasing," Rodgers said.

    "Second half, we figured out their press. They have normally been pressing in 4-4-2 but changed it slightly. It just meant we had to drop a man in our build-up play.

    "We had some good moments in the first half, but once we were able to play through that pressure, I thought in the second half we were excellent.

    "It's a very exciting period for us. All the players know they will play, they just need to be ready."

  • 'I love where I am,' says Simeone after 700th game in charge of Atletico 'I love where I am,' says Simeone after 700th game in charge of Atletico

    Diego Simeone said he is "calm and at peace" at Atletico Madrid after his side edged Deportivo Alaves 2-1 in LaLiga in his 700th game in charge of the club. 

    Atletico went behind through a Jon Guridi penalty in the seventh minute, but Antoine Griezmann drew them level from the spot in the 76th minute. 

    The winner came via Alexander Sorloth in the 86th minute as Atletico moved four points behind leaders Barcelona. 

    Simeone, who has been in charge of Atletico since 2011, is the first coach to manage 700 matches with the same LaLiga club.

    "I live in the present, we are having a good time, the boys are working very responsibly," Simeone told DAZN. 

    "I am calm and at peace. I love where I am and that's it."

    He managed Atletico to LaLiga title triumphs in 2014 and 2021 and also helped Los Rojiblancos win two Europa League titles in 2012 and 2018.

    The game against Alaves was Simeone's 492nd LaLiga match in charge, and the Argentine has also managed the third-most games with a single club in the Champions League (109), after Alex Ferguson with Manchester United and Arsene Wenger at Arsenal.

  • AC Milan 0-0 Juventus: Bianconeri maintain unbeaten start after Rossoneri stalemate AC Milan 0-0 Juventus: Bianconeri maintain unbeaten start after Rossoneri stalemate

    AC Milan and Juventus shared the spoils following a dour goalless draw at San Siro.

    The Bianconeri maintained their unbeaten start to the Serie A season, but missed the chance to go second behind leaders Inter after a game lacking in quality and chances.

    With the likes of Dusan Vlahovic and Arkadiusz Milik out injured, Juventus began the game without a recognised striker, as Teun Koopmeiners and Weston McKennie led the line.

    Koopmeiners hit the side-netting from a tight angle after 10 minutes, while Kenan Yildiz grazed the post following a fine individual run midway through the half.

    Alvaro Morata had Milan's best chance at the other end, but the former Juventus striker could only head wide from Rafael Leao's free-kick.

    Opportunities did not fall as freely in the second half either, and both teams left the field to a chorus of boos on the referee's final whistle.

    Data Debrief: Stubborn Juve take clean sheet tally into double figures

    Juve are the first team to register 10 clean sheets in their opening 13 matches of a Serie A season since Roma (also 10) in 2013-14.

    The Bianconeri have also kept five clean sheets in their first six away league games in a campaign for only the fourth time, also achieving the feat in 1967-68, 2004-05, 2023-24.

    Meanwhile, Thiago Motta is only the fifth Juventus manager to go unbeaten in his first 13 league matches in charge (won six, drawn seven), after Jesse Carver, Cestmir Vycpalek, Antonio Conte and Maurizio Sarri.

© 2024 SportsMaxTV All Rights Reserved.