Brazilian soccer player Adriano was locked in his hotel over the Feb. 11/12 weekend by his own club to make sure he didn’t cheat on his diet. Adriano, who plays for the Corinthians club in Brazil, was told to stay in the hotel and could only eat meals that were specially prepared for him as doctors and team officials said he needs to lose weight to get back into playing shape. He was also ordered to practice three times a day.

Fabio Mahseredjian, the Corinthians trainer, said the team had to lock him away for his own good since he won’t get into shape if he keeps up his unhealthy excessive eating habit. Mahseredjian said by locking him in the hotel the team can control what he eats and make sure he gets enough rest. He added that Adriano will never lose any weight unless he stops eating.

The trainer said that a club nutritionist came up with a special diet for the player and he will be fed separately from his teammates until his condition improves. The 29-year old was also fed nutritional snacks in his room at various times of the day. Tite, the team’s coach, said the club is doing what’s best for the player and the team as they want him to get better.

The 29-year-old Adriano had surgery on his Achilles tendon in April 2011 and hasn’t played much since returning near the end of the year. If he doesn’t get into decent shape soon he’ll likely be left off of the team’s roster for the Copa Libertadores tournament. However, he did manage to score the winning goal in an important league game which helped Corinthians win the title last season.

Mahseredjian said Adriano hasn’t complained about his diet or restriction of freedom since he knows the club is trying to help him. The trainer said Adriano has to realize it’s harder to get into shape when you’re older and he has to do his part to help win the battle of the bulge. Brazilian media reported that this is Adriano’s last chance at getting his act together. They said several players and club directors haven’t been happy with him for missing numerous physiotherapy sessions with no good reason.

Adriano left his previous team in 2009 when he said he wasn’t happy playing in Italy with Inter Milan. He said he wanted to be nearer to his friends and headed back to Brazil to play with Flamengo, his first professional team. He moved back to Italy for the 2010/11 season and played five games for Roma before his injury. But the club terminated his three-year contract prompting his move to Corinthians. While with Flamengo he missed numerous training sessions and a team director publicly announced that Adriano has a drinking problem. He’s played 48 games for Brazil’s national team and has scored 27 goals.

Adriano has been in the news quite a bit over the past few seasons for his off-field activities. These include incidents such as a public fight with a girlfriend, a minor traffic, and being investigated by the police for alleged connections with drug lords. He was also accused of shooting a female passenger in his car in her hand. However, she changed her story later and said the gun went off in her hands by accident.