Let's hope Inter Milan's 'Emperor' can turn his career around

Where's Adriano? A question asked my Jose Mourinho, Massimo Moratti and every other Interista on the planet. Having been on international duty with Brazil, l'imperatore was expected back in Milan on Friday, but he did not appear. Nothing new for Adriano but this time he was non-contactable and it seemed no one knew where he was. Instead of contempt or anger towards the troubled star, Mourinho voiced concern "I am neither angry nor critical. I am only sad and the best thing is to say nothing. We will see how things end up for him but at the moment I think about the person more than the player."

A sentiment echoed by international team-mate Kaka, "Let's hope for the best and that he will not quit football because he is a wonderful lad," he said.

Whilst early developments over the weekend pointed to Adriano being missing. It appears this latest event in the troubled stars career was brought about by the break up of his relationship with ex-girlfriend Joana Machado.

But it seems Adriano has returned to the world at large after being spotted at a party in the slums of Rio, he is now back with his family and intends to remain until after the Flamengo-Fluminense derby.

Adriano was once the most feared striker on the planet and most thought he would go on to become a world-beater, scooping up team and individual awards. He had pace, power and the samba skills present in every Brazil lain footballer.

It was however in 2004, the death of his father, with whom he was extremely close, seems to have scarred the burly striker in a very profound way. His behavior has become more and more erratic, missing training sessions, loss of form, being spotted in nightclubs and even coming to training ‘under the influence.' After this latest incident we can now see how fragile the mind of Adriano has become.

I do not want to make excuses for l'imperatore but he is clearly a troubled man, but on the other hand he has gone through experiences that most people encounter more often than not. He can be forgiven for that, but for me, he needs to grow up and deal with these troubles or risk losing any semblance of the career he has left, otherwise he will fade into obscurity like many have done in the past.

At Inter he is with a club that might well stand by him, as they did with Nwankwo Kanu and his countryman Ronaldo, albeit their ailments were more physical, they still received much needed support though difficult times.

Let's hope and pray that ‘The Emperor' can turn his career round and finally defeat his demons.