Ruben Neves watched his son being born over FaceTime due to lockdown

Lockdown forced Ruben Neves to watch birth of his son Mateo on FaceTime on the TEAM BUS in what was ‘the best moment of his life’… now, having still not seen his little boy, the Wolves ace is hopeful for success on and off the pitch in bid to be united

• Ruben Neves watched his son being born on FaceTime from the Wolves team bus
• The midfielder’s wife Debora had returned to Portugal when travel was allowed
• He was unable to be by her side as all flights to and from the UK were suspended
• The vice-captain also felt bad about leaving the team during their injury crisis 
• It has been five weeks since Mateo’s birth and Neves still hasn’t held his son  

Among the hundreds of coach journeys Ruben Neves has made in a seven-year football career, the one from south London to Wolverhampton on a wintry Saturday night in January will always stand out.

The Wolves midfielder had spent the afternoon on the bench as his team were beaten 1-0 by Crystal Palace on January 30, but the attempt to gain Premier League points was not the only matter on his mind.

Neves knew his wife, Debora, was due to give birth to their third child in Portugal that day. They had decided the baby would be born in their home country and Debora had returned there when travel was permitted.

Wolves’ Ruben Neves still hasn’t seen his little boy after his wife gave birth in Portugal

The midfielder had to watch his son being born on FaceTime from the Wolves team bus

When Portuguese prime minister Antonio Costa announced that all flights to and from the UK would be suspended from January 23, Neves knew that he would not be at his wife’s side during labour.

Even if he had been permitted to make the journey, quarantine rules would have made the 23-year-old unavailable for Wolves, at a time when they were struggling with injuries and fighting for form. 

As vice-captain, Neves felt bad about that, even before the authorities effectively took the decision out of his family’s hands.

So instead of supporting Debora at her bedside, Neves had to do so via his mobile phone, somewhere on the M40, as baby Mateo was delivered safely.

Neves’ wife Debora (left) had returned to Portugal when travel was still permitted

‘We knew for some time he was due to be born on that day and we organised everything for me to travel after the Palace game,’ Neves explained via Zoom from Compton, Wolves’ training ground on the outskirts of the city.

‘But then things went really bad with the pandemic, so I wasn’t allowed to go. It is hard but we could not do anything else. We tried everything we could for me to be able to go but there were no flights. Even if I had been able to travel, I would have had to quarantine for two weeks here, at a time when we had midweek matches. With the injuries we had, it would not have been good for me to miss three or four games.

‘So I travelled to London on the Friday with the team, and then straight after the game I was on FaceTime with my wife. Between one and two hours later, while we were on the coach travelling back, Mateo was born. I was always with her, by the phone, during the birth.

‘It was a bit different but it was really special. Fortunately we have all the modern technology so we can still be close to each other in these moments.

‘It was unusual but at the same time it’s the best moment of our lives, as everyone who is a father knows. You cannot explain what we feel at the moment. Even though I was a long way from them it was really special for me and my family.

Antonio Costa announced that all flights to and from the UK would be suspended from January

Costa’s decision meant Neves was unable to travel home in time for the birth of his son

‘Mateo is really well — healthy and happy, everything is perfect. Of course they are not here yet so it is not as perfect as I wanted but his health is the most important thing. He is sleeping well, too — let’s hope things stay that way!

‘These days I go home, I rest in the afternoon and spend a lot of time on FaceTime with my family. Thanks to my family and my upbringing, I have always been mentally strong. I hope things will change soon because in Portugal cases are lower and everything is better so I hope it will soon be taken off the red list. Everything is changing a lot but I hope my family can be with me soon.’

Neves’s composure is remarkable for a man living alone in a foreign country, in a pandemic, and who has still not held his five-week-old son. The Portugal international does not turn 24 until March 13 but, after skipper Conor Coady, he is already the most authoritative voice in the Wolves dressing room and has produced displays to match recently.

He scored the equaliser in last weekend’s 1-1 draw at Newcastle and ran a team-high 11.5km to help secure a point. He also scored penalties in the victories over Arsenal and Southampton as Wolves halted an alarming run to take 11 points from five matches and haul themselves back up the table, prior to their defeat by Manchester City on Tuesday night.

His son Mateo is now five weeks old and the Wolves vice captain has still not held him

There was great surprise when the 20-year-old Neves, a client of influential agent Jorge Mendes, left FC Porto in 2017, swapping the Champions League for the Championship. But he adapted smoothly to life on the field after taking care to settle quickly off it.

Neves took English lessons twice a week for the four months before he moved to Wolves, and when he arrived in this country he bought an English translation of Italy great Andrea Pirlo’s autobiography, taking care to look up the words he did not recognise.

Yet nothing could have prepared him or his team-mates for what they faced last season, which must be taken into account when considering Wolves’ troubles this term. Because of the three-month hiatus for Covid-19, their 2019-20 campaign began with a Europa League qualifier on July 25, 2019, and concluded on August 11, 2020, when Sevilla beat them in a one-off quarter-final in Germany.

Just 34 days later, they opened the new season with a 2-0 win at Sheffield United. Then, on November 29, striker Raul Jimenez suffered a fractured skull in the win at Arsenal which briefly placed his health and career in doubt — a traumatic time for the Mexican, his family and team-mates.

He scored the equaliser in last weekend’s 1-1 draw at Newcastle and ran a team-high 11.5km

Neves also scored penalties in the victories over Arsenal (pictured) and Southampton

‘Fortunately everything went well for Raul and we are really happy with the situation, because it was hard for everyone,’ said Neves. ‘He is training outside, and we’ll help him as much as we can so he can be back with us on the pitch.

‘The start of the season was hard. We played against Sevilla and then we had two weeks before coming back to training, and I had three or four training sessions before the first game of the season.

‘I hope things can come back to normal soon. It’s impossible to be the same as when fans are there. The adrenaline, the intensity. We can hear everything being said, the sound of the ball when we pass it. It’s really hard to keep the same focus. I hope football will be the same as before when fans come back. To play with a full stadium again will be amazing for us.’

And if Neves could mark the occasion with a goal on Mateo’s first appearance at Molineux, that moment would feel even sweeter.

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