When the name of Geny Catamo was mentioned in Sporting’s selection to carry out the final preparation, many thought that this would only be to “make up the numbers” until the arrival of some internationals, who only later started would go to work. But he left good marks, scoring a goal in each of the first three friendlies he played and then also providing an assist for Paulinho against Villarreal, eventually winning the trust of Rúben Amorim to join the team Close.
And the bet on the 22-year-old left-footed left winger, converted by the Sporting coach, has been won! Despite being only the 14th player in the Leon team in terms of playing time, he is one of only three to have appeared in the 13 official matches, along with Gonçalo Inácio and Morita. We are talking about Geny Catamo, the originally left-footed winger, who has been converted into a right winger by the Sporting coach. He was the one who opened the scoring in the important victory the day before yesterday over Bessa (2-0) and he had already scored a goal and an assist in the recent cup match with Olivais and Moscavide, saving the trailing team. at half-time against the daring Districts team.
Geny arrived in Portugal in 2018 for Amora’s youth team from the Black Bulls Academy in Mozambique after joining Maxaquene. But his fate could have been FC Porto, as Junaide Lalgy, owner of Black Bulls and investor in Amora, revealed to A Bola newspaper in August. It was January 2018 and the young aspiring professional footballer was 17 years old.
Sporting had their eye on Geny and secured his loan from Amora at the start of the 2019/20 season, but it was not until September 2020 that he signed a professional contract with the Lions at the age of 19. After representing the juniors, under-23s and Sporting B, he made his debut for the main team in a match against Portimonense, entering the pitch at 60″ in time to assist one of Paulinho’s three goals .was eventually loaned to V. Guimarães, where he stayed until the end of the season, having played ten games (with three assists).The following season he was loaned to Marítimo, but played only 11 games (5 of them as starter).), with one goal and help.
Now he imposes himself on Sporting and will very soon renew his contract with the Lions, with a significant salary increase, currently one of the lowest in the squad, and the club’s intention is to increase the value of the termination clause, currently at €45 million…
But first, Sporting will still try to buy the 75% of the player pass still held by Amora, in an operation that the Leonine club wanted to close for 600,000 euros, but the League 3 club claims that the deadline to exercise of the option purchase for this amount ending on July 31. The two clubs have spoken in recent months but an agreement has not yet been reached, with the Black Bulls Academy demanding €510,000 as it understands it still has rights to the player.
Geny has been a constant presence in the Mozambican national team since he was 18 and is currently one of the big figures of the ‘mambas’. He is preparing to miss Sporting for almost the entire month of January, possibly until mid-February, depending on circumstances. the team’s progress in the Cup of Africa of Nations (CAN).
A modest boy who wants to learn
If there is a coach who knows him well, it is Luís Gonçalves, the person responsible for introducing him to the Mozambican national team in September 2019, at the age of 18. “It was in a decisive match against the Mauritius Islands, which qualified us for the group stage of the African qualification for the 2022 World Cup. I was heavily criticized by the local press, because they thought Geny was not ready yet! He put in a good performance and also scored a goal from a penalty,” he recalled to DN.
The current coach of the Angolan Interclube admits that he still exchanges messages with his former player, whom he describes as “a very humble child who always wants to learn”. And he is not surprised by his success at Sporting. “Nothing, nothing… in fact, even Rúben Amorim himself should not be surprised, since for some reason he called him up for three pre-seasons at Sporting,” he stressed, arguing that “he was injuries had slowed his development”.
Luís Gonçalves reveals that when Geny Catamo appeared in the main team, he was known as the “Messi of Mozambique”, a nickname given to him by Mexer, interestingly a former Sporting footballer. And what are the big differences between the 2019 player and the current one? “I’ve known him since I was 15. He’s always been very fast, technical, explosive and great one-on-one. He’s gained experience and athleticism and is much more committed to the defensive process. He’s improved a lot.” in responding to loss. Go to Sporting. It was the best thing that could have happened to him and I think the loans to V. Guimarães and Marítimo also helped him a lot,” he emphasized.
The coach thinks that Geny Catamo can still improve in some areas, “namely that he has more courage in confronting opponents, is not afraid of making mistakes, but he has everything it takes to continue developing positively.” And in his opinion, the right wing position is the one that best suits his characteristics, “which allows him to play the entire flank, similar to what happens on the left with Nuno Santos”. However, he emphasizes that “in the Mozambican team he is used in a more central position, behind the striker, because he can read the game very well”.
According to Luís Gonçalves, the Mozambican international will be missed by the Sporting team during the African Cup of Nations. “In fact, Rúben Amorim himself spoke about it at the end of the match with Boavista, when he said that a solution is already being worked on in the training ranks to make up for his absence…”, he shot.
Source: DN
