Kaka: I've got God on my side

HE has destroyed Manchester United — now Kaka has Liverpool in his sights this week.

Yet the young Brazilian feared he would never play again after breaking his neck in a freak swimming pool accident.

Now the AC Milan playmaker, 25, reveals in detail for the first time how he fought his way back from near tragedy.

And he admits lifting the European Cup on Wednesday would be the fulfilment of his ultimate goal after achieving the 10 targets he set himself when disaster struck seven years ago.

Kaka’s mesmerising two-goal performance at Old Trafford last month set Milan on their way to a 5-3 aggregate victory over United in their Champions League semi-final.

The deeply-religious Brazilian believes it was God’s will which gave him the strength to fire the Italian giants to this week’s Athens final.

Yet Kaka will never forget the day his career was almost destroyed before it had really begun.

He recalled: “In October 2000, I was at my grandfather’s house in a small town in Brazil called Caldas Novas.

“I was sliding into his swimming pool but fell awkwardly and hit my head on the bottom of the pool.

“I twisted my neck but did not realise at the time that I had broken my sixth cervical bone.

“I went back to my club, Sao Paulo, the following day and actually trained for a couple of days. But I was in such pain the club eventually sent me to hospital for tests.

“The doctor was asking me whether my limbs were feeling numb and I told him I was OK.

“It was only then he revealed the serious nature of my injury.

“He was trying not to frighten me but admitted I was very lucky to have been able to train for two days with a broken neck and not suffer permanent damage.

“All I knew since a kid was that anyone with a broken neck would be disabled for life so my immediate question was would I ever be able to play football again?

“The doctor told me I would not be able to play for at least three months and I would have to wear a cervical collar all that time.

“Then they would be able to tell if I was going to fully recover.

“But after two months, the injury had healed and I was able to resume my football career.

“That was when I knew God was looking after me and that He was on my side.

“I was born a Christian, read the Bible and always placed my faith in God and Jesus. During my injury, many fears crossed my mind. Reading the Bible and praying were the things that really helped me through those dark moments.

“I had several extraordinary experiences with God which made me feel confident I would eventually be able to play football again.

“Now I believe faith helped me through. I knew God had a purpose for me and my life.”

Kaka revealed it was when his future was in the balance that he set 10 targets for his comeback.

The first was simply to kick a football again, the second to resume his professional career with Sao Paulo ranging through to playing in the World Cup finals for Brazil and moving to a major club in Europe.

Kaka admitted: “Now I have an 11th target and that is to win the Champions League.”

Kaka is now in his fourth year at Milan following a £5million move in 2003. He explained: “I chose Milan because in Sao Paulo I played alongside Leonardo for six months and he was constantly outlining how great the club was.

“I was very young when I planned out my career and everything so far has worked as I hoped it might.”

Everything, that is, apart from his last meeting with Liverpool in the 2005 European Cup final in Istanbul.

He admitted: “No one expected what happened but in football you can never be sure of anything.

“Two years have passed since Istanbul and I honestly don’t think about it any more.

“Liverpool played a great final and deserved to win the title. Now we have another chance to write our name on the trophy.

“Nobody in Milan is thinking about revenge. We are just happy to be in the final again.

“We know what Liverpool are capable of. They are an excellent squad, disciplined and well organised. You can see what a great job their coach has done.

“Liverpool’s strength is they are used to playing the big games. They never give up. They have already beaten Barcelona and Chelsea so we know they are a dangerous opponent.

“But we have taken a great deal of confidence from our semi-final win over Manchester United.”

Kaka has been linked to a swap with Chelsea’s Andriy Shevchenko.

Yet the Brazilian insisted: “The Premiership is an exciting league but I have a contract at Milan until 2011 and I am very happy where I am.”

Clipped from : http://www.thesun.co.uk