By Melody Gross 
The Spanish-Senegal defender has been sidelined between 2020 and 2022, after testing positive for a banned substance while at Barnsley.
Bamboo Diaby was highlighted in the British sports press on Friday. The 25-year-old Spanish-Senegalese defender is experiencing one of the best moments of his career this season, after going through a real ordeal between 2020 and 2022.
Bamboo Diaby represented Barnsley in 2019, when he tested positive for a banned substance during an anti-doping test. The centre-back stated that he did not intentionally take the substance, but his evidence was not enough to stop what was expected to be a lengthy ban. “It was a difficult period. I went back home, to Barcelona, and spent all the money I had training in a professional gym to keep myself fit,” he began recalling the centre-back who currently represents Sheffield Wednesday, before revealing that. He used his passion for cars to get a job: “I started working in a local garage, because I was always interested in cars. I went there and asked the owner if I could work. I explained my situation, that I was a professional footballer.” He said: “Whoever was with me, I was banned. I wasn’t ashamed to tell him because that’s the reality. They gave me a test and I learned a lot about cars – if you want a car, I can sell you one!” This was in statements reported by The Sun newspaper.
The situation in the workshop began to yield such that about 200 cars had to be controlled at the same time. “I had to sell cars online, through the computer, over the phone, talking to people face to face. Cars were going in and out. I had to buy them and then sell them. I had to control about 200 cars. It was like that.” “It was a very good experience,” he added.
“Between one job and another,” Bamboo Diaby finds time to keep fit. I went to the gym to do my training, which is important when I return to football. I woke up early, trained until 10am and then had a full day [de trabalho]. If I’m late by an hour, I’ll have to work late or overtime to make up for that lost time.”
Bamboo Diaby was not afraid to admit that it was his family, as well as his friends, who gave him the strength to keep going. “They all helped me a lot. Thanks to them I did not give up on football. In difficult moments when we think that our career is over, they are there to tell us: ‘You have to come back strong’. That is when it was an experience that made me stronger. It is also something that helped me in the situation in which We find ourselves in it now, at the bottom of the league table. It doesn’t matter how difficult the situation is. You have to stress the work, the confidence and the faith.
Despite his suspension, Bamboo Diaby has continued to receive messages of support from his former Barnsley teammates. “They know how hard I work to stay fit and they know me outside of football. They knew it was impossible for a player like me to deliberately consume banned substances. All my Barnsley teammates sent me messages and helped me through that time.” “I had my time at Barcelona, even if it was just a short message saying ‘Bamboo, your time will come’. It meant a lot.”
Sheffield Wednesday currently ranks last in the Championship (equivalent to the second tier of English football), with only 6 points from 16 rounds. Even with the difficulty of continuity in the second division, Bamboo Diaby said that he still believes in maintaining the team. “I look at the table to use it as inspiration and say to myself and the team: Come on, we have to improve. I’m not looking for excuses for our poor performance, I’m just looking for excuses to motivate myself. “I want to move up the standings with this team. I know we are working hard and I feel we can continue to improve. To overcome the downfall, the most important thing is to believe. “I like to believe, and if we look from every player’s point of view, I know they believe too.”
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