Before joining Wolves, Jimenez was a struggling footballer at Atletico Madrid.
player,
Raul Jimenez, admitted that what changed his career was realizing the fact that being a great footballer wasn’t always about scoring goals. During his time with
Atletico Madrid, Jimenez struggled to score in his 21 appearances, until he joined
Benficawhere he scored 31 goals in 120 games.
The Wolves player, who became one of the
Premier League
best goal-scorers since joining the team, told
Goal
:
"One day I realized that the most important thing was not scoring goals. I learned that the most valuable thing was playing as a team."
The Mexican footballer also talked about an advice his mother,
Martha Rodriguez
, gave him, which helped Jimenez put his Atelti struggles behind, adding:
“It's something my mom taught me. Despite making a mistake or failing on occasion, you always have to know that another opportunity will come later. Being good off the field also makes you feel good on the field.”
"Now I have a very solid life off the field with my daughter and girlfriend, and that fills me with pride: knowing that they are out there supporting me so that I can continue to give my best."
Jimenez's father,
Raul Jimenez Vega
, has also talked about the role he had in driving his son’s career, saying:
"At six months, he was crawling instead of using his toys like every child of that time. I purposely passed him a ball and he left everything. He grabbed it and from there it was a non-stop with football.”
"I took him to my games and he enjoyed it. One day he said: 'Dad, I want to be a footballer'."
Jimenez is currently spending his time on the sidelines after suffering from a fractured skull for which he had to go under a surgery.