A former Liverpool youth prospect who roomed with Raheem Sterling swapped football dreams for the painter’s easel by becoming an artist.
David Moli made the decision to call it a day out on the pitch at the tender age of just 24. Despite having started out with Sterling in Liverpool’s academy Moli, the former centre-forward never made it in the professional game, in part due to a career-ending injury.
While Sterling soared into the Liverpool first-team in 2012, Moli took a leap to join Wolves, ditching two years on his Reds contract; a decision he’d later rue, reports the Liverpool Echo. While at Molineux, he suffered a severe injury, splitting a muscle between his tibia and fibula, which knocked him out of the game for eight months.
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Post-recovery, Moli joined Hayes & Yeading in non-league but was struck down again as the injury flared up. He subsequently had spells at the likes of Epinal in France, Stormil Olszytn in Poland and Estonia’s Parnu Vaprus.
It was at the latter of the trio that Moli tore his ACL in training, further compounding his injury troubles. Ultimately, these persistent injuries forced him to retire prematurely at the tender age of 24, a time when many players hit their peak.
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(Image: Steve Bainbridge)
However, the void left by football was quickly filled by art as Moli established himself as a world-renowned artist. “I’ve always had an ability to put something creative on paper,” he shared with The Times in 2019. “When I was recovering from injury, it helped overcome depression.” He added: “When you’re alone in your room, all you need is a canvas.”
Moli’s career has blossomed since. Not only do some of his pieces sell for thousands at a time, he also does artwork for a host of top-name footballers.
Chatting to The Athletic in 2020, he spilled: “Quite a few footballers have bought stuff. I’ve just done one for Jesse Lingard. Fred’s wife messaged me and commissioned me to do a piece for him for their anniversary. Luke Shaw’s missus ordered a piece for his birthday. She was surprised when I showed her a picture of Luke and I playing for England Under-16s together!”
(Image: AFP/Getty Images)
He continued: “Trent has got three pieces. One was commissioned by a clothing brand and then he messaged me to say, ‘Thanks very much, can I have another two please? ‘ So I ended up doing one of Biggie (Smalls) and one of The Joker for him. (Watford’s) Andre Gray and (former Cardiff City winger) Nathaniel Mendez-Laing have bought stuff too.”
“All that support means a lot. Instagram has been massive in terms of helping to get my work out there a lot more.”
Sterling, meanwhile, who Moli lived with in a four-bed semi in St Helens during their Liverpool days, has flourished on the pitch both at the Reds and Manchester City. Following his £49million move to the Etihad, Sterling netted 91 goals in 225 appearances for the Sky Blues before transferring to Chelsea in 2022.