Porto defender Pepe slept in his mother's bed until he was 17

Pepe became the oldest Champions League scorer in history on Tuesday, but it wasn't too long ago that the Portuguese defender was still sharing a bed with his mother.

At the grand old age of 40 years and 254 days, Pepe arrived in stoppage time to head home Porto's second goal of the evening against Antwerp on Tuesday.

The victory leaves Porto joint-top of their Champions League group alongside Barcelona, with the former Real Madrid star proving he still has plenty to offer.

But despite his reputation for being one of the toughest footballers in the world, even Pepe required some love and attention from his mum - and shared a bed with her right up until adulthood.

Speaking to Portuguese outlet Tribuna Expresso back in 2021, Pepe revealed: "Until I came to Portugal, at the age of 17, I slept with my mother, so imagine what it was like [laughter].

"I was already big and I slept with my parents, so I imagine my father did not like to have me there [laughs].

"This is interesting: the other day I was talking to my mother and she was telling me that I really liked to run my hand through her hair and I told her that maybe I already knew it would be too much time away from her."

Speaking after his last-gasp header against Antwerp, Pepe dedicated his goal to his mother.

“First of all, it’s a special day as it was my mother’s birthday," he said (quotes via Fabrizio Romano). "I told her: I’m gonna score a goal for you!

“To be here at this age it’s incredible, to work hard, sacrifice and also enormous passion for football.

“It was my dream to be a football player one day. To be in a full stadium and play, enjoy, have special nights.

“I know there’s just a little more left before I leave this game... but I’ll give my best for Porto every day.”

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Featured Image Credit: Getty

Topics: Pepe, Real Madrid, FC Porto, Champions League

Joe Adams

Joe is a Journalist for SPORTbible with a primary focus on football. He has previously covered a number of other sports including boxing, rugby and F1. Wishes he was born left-footed.

@joeadamsjourno