Joao Cancelo admits he nearly QUIT football after losing his mother in a car accident in 2013

Manchester City star Joao Cancelo admits he nearly stopped playing football professionally after losing his mother nearly a decade ago.

Filomena Cancelo died in a car crash very close to Benfica's training centre - a few miles south of Lisbon - in 2013, when the defender was just a teenager at the Portuguese giants.

Cancelo, then aged 18, and his brother Pedro were also in the car but only suffered minor injuries, but the pair and their father Jose were left devastated by the loss of Filomena.

Now in an interview with Champions Journal, the Portugal international has revealed how his mother now serves as his inspiration, as he reveals he visits her grave every time he return to Portugal.

'When I lost my mother, I felt like I was at the bottom of a well. I felt like a robot that had to do its job, then go home, then another day – day in, day out,' he said.

'When I lost my mother, I didn't enjoy my football; I was playing because I had to. I really thought of giving up because it didn't make sense anymore. My love for the game started to gradually come back; my smile slowly returned.

'I would really like to be able to talk to my mother because there's always something missing. Even when I achieve something important, there's always this feeling there. It's as if I always have an emptiness in my heart because she is not physically there.

'In Portugal, I always go to the cemetery to see her. It's like an obligation I have. That's where I feel good, next to her. Even though she is not physically there, I feel good. It cleanses my soul, my bad energies, and helps me live happier.'

The Man City full-back - who has also represented LaLiga side Valencia and Serie A giants Inter Milan and Juventus after making his breakthrough in the 2014-15 season - now wants the memory of his 'cheerful' mother to live on in his family.

'Her personality is most similar to mine. Only I know what she did for me; the difficulties we both went through, the conversations she had with me when there was no money at home, Cancelo added.

'I would tell her that I would try to do everything to give her a better future, so that she would never have to work again. And today, even though she is where she is, I do everything to make her proud of me.

'She was a cheerful person and even if she was tired, she always had time for my brother and me. Today I also try not to let my family want for anything. I try to give my daughter and my girlfriend the love she gave me.'

Cancelo - who joined the Premier League champions from Juventus three years ago - has made 42 appearances across all competitions this season.

He has netted once in the Premier League this season at Newcastle and has scored another two in the Champions League.

He has also recorded nine assists to go along with that, the latest of which came by setting up Gabriel Jesus in the 2-2 home draw against Liverpool.