Work Text:
It was only a few minutes until Alisson had to join his teammates for the warm-ups. As had been the case with every Premier League game that season, Alisson was started between the posts. And as was the case with nearly every game in his life, Alisson’s nerves were all over the place.
The vibrant yet muffled samba music coming from his duffel bag alerted Alisson that he had a message. He pulled the phone out and clicked on Whatsapp, smiling when he saw who was contacting him.
ManoMuri: Nervous, huh?
Alisson: 😬 Talk about it
ManoMuri: I KNEW IT FLACO OWES ME A HUNDRED BUCKS BABY!!!!
Alisson rolled his eyes at Muriel’s latest text. If it wasn’t for Muriel’s bald spot and better memory, he found it hard to tell who was actually the younger sibling.
Alisson: How’s Limassol going?
ManoMuri: Our game starts an hour after yours. We’re third in the relegation playoffs
ManoMuri: So technically both of our clubs are having dumpster fire seasons
ManoMuri: Brothers stick together, I guess 😁
Alisson: 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 Você está terrível
ManoMuri: Não, eu sou LINDO 😎
Alisson: Cale-se
ManoMuri: Não, VOCÊ cale-se irmãozinho
Alisson: I’m still taller than you 😉
ManoMuri: OI have some respect for your elders baby brother
Alisson: You should come to Liverpool
ManoMuri: To do what, sit on the bench?
Alisson: NO, so you can get a hug from the boss! And Marcelo’s here, you’ll love it
ManoMuri: Well, I’ve got to meet Bobby and Flaco sometime soon
Alisson: You met them after the Copa America, remember?
ManoMuri: well yeah, but I need to see them again. The Copa America was in 2019, it’s been far too long since we saw each other in person
Alisson: I couldn’t agree more
“Ali! You coming anytime soon?” Fabinho called. He sounded far away, and that was when Alisson noticed that the locker room was almost empty.
“I’ll be right there,” he promised.
ManoMuri: how’s the team?
Alisson: Considering that there’s twenty-nine first-team players besides me, the youngsters, the manager, the babies…that’s a long story
ManoMuri: I know 😆
Alisson: You’ll love them
ManoMuri: already do
Alisson: You should come over after the end of the season, when we’re all free
Alisson: Don’t tell Bobby, but we’re having a farewell party for him
ManoMuri: If it’s anything like the farewell barbecue you guys hosted when Saliou, Divvy and Neko left, then it will definitely be something 😂
Alisson: Yeah, we’re having it after our final match
ManoMuri: So I’ll come to watch your final few games and then we’ll party
Alisson: WAIT final FEW games?! MULTIPLE?
ManoMuri: SIM we finish early in Cyprus so that means I can leave in nine days
Alisson: YESSSSSS 🥳 BEST DAY EVER
ManoMuri: I thought you said that after you won the Dominator’s league, and the Club World Cup, and the Apex League, and when we won the Copa America, and…
Alisson: Okay fiiiiiine, so I have a lot of best days
ManoMuri: this is why you’re my irmaozinho
Alisson: yeah
“Come on mate , the match will start without you if you don’t get a move on!” Robertson jumped in place, taking Alisson by the wrist and dragging him to the door. “And you know where we would be without you. I dread to imagine…”
Alisson shook his head, letting the Scot drag him out of the room and through the halls.
*
They won.
They freakin’ won 4-3.
And Klopp somehow managed to pull a hamstring even though he’d retired from football twenty-three years ago.
After running around with his teammates like little kids on a sugar rush, the first thing Alisson did was to check his Whatsapp. There it was—a text from Muriel.
ManoMuri: IRMAOZINHO!!!! I saw the game, it was CRAZY
Alisson: tell me about it 😅
Alisson: I thought the nerves were going to give me a bald spot as big as yours 😜
ManoMuri: OI HAVE RESPECT
ManoMuri: is it really true that Klopp injured his HAMSTRING?! Loooooolllll 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
ManoMuri: Wish my manager had enough energy to do that
Alisson: Our gaffer will always be our gaffer 🤣
Alisson: Let’s just hope it’s not that bad, though
ManoMuri: that’s what I call taking one for the team
Alisson: yeah
Alisson: I saw the result of your match btw, 1-1 vs Olympiacos isn’t such a bad score
ManoMuri: yeah, you did pretty good too
ManoMuri: I like the guys and everything, but the defense was almost INVISIBLE today
ManoMuri: Our team is a chaotic mess, innit?
Alisson: “innit” we have two scousers on our team Muri shut up
ManoMuri: What about the Greek one
Alisson: zip it
“ WE VERDOMMEN GEWONNEN!” Van Dijk and Gakpo screeched at the top of their lungs, crashing on the bench next to Alisson even though their lockers were nowhere close to his.
Gakpo pointed to Alisson’s phone, careful not to press anything. “Who’s ‘ManoMuri’?”
“That’s Ali’s older brother,” Van Dijk explained. “How’d his game go?”
“A draw, but he made some important saves.” Alisson put his phone to the side, hugging Van Dijk very tightly. “You saved me today, Virg.”
“And you saved Virg, so I guess you youngsters are even.” Milner tossed a balled-up shirt at Robertson, smirking as the Scot demanded a VAR check on the incident. “By the way guys, the boss seems to have injured his adductor. He’s breaking records every day, and now he’s managed to land himself on the injury list along with our midfield.”
The whole locker room was in stitches at that remark.