Ronaldinho’s Son Takes on a New Role: Camera Operator for a Day

Joao Mendes, the 19-year-old left-back, has featured in 7 matches this season, totaling 263 minutes on the pitch.

Here’s How Joao de Assis Moreira, Ronaldinho’s Son, Plays

Joao Mendes is in the midst of his debut season at FC Barcelona after joining from Cruzeiro. The 19-year-old son of Ronaldinho is part of Barcelona’s Juvenil A squad and was among the players not included in the matchday squad against Sabadell last Sunday. Instead of watching from the stands, Mendes took on the role of a camera operator to record the match, assisting the staff in post-match analysis.

While it was Mendes’s turn this time, this practice is common in Óscar López’s coaching methodology. Players who are not named in the matchday squad often contribute to the staff by providing video footage for tactical analysis.

Joining Mendes in the stands were Adrian Gill, Niko Takahashi, and Andrés Cuenca, all of whom observed the match together.

Ronaldinho’s son officially joined FC Barcelona this summer. He had spent a few months training with the team last year and even participated in the MiC tournament with the Juvenil B squad.

This season, Mendes has earned official match appearances for the Juvenil A team, featuring in 7 matches, starting in 3 of them, and accumulating 263 minutes on the field. Mendes is a versatile player capable of operating as both a winger and a left-back.

In a closely contested match, Barcelona emerged victorious with a narrow 1-0 win over Sabadell, who put up a strong fight and came close to equalizing in the final stages.