When Antonio Rudiger came off the bench during Germany's 7-1 demolition of Curacao at Houston Stadium, millions across the world watched a man whose very presence at a World Cup is a testament to survival, sacrifice, and the generosity of nations that open their doors to those fleeing war.

The Real Madrid defender's family escaped the brutal civil war that tore through Sierra Leone across a decade of bloodshed. His parents made it to Germany, where Rudiger was born and eventually raised in a refugee centre — but the journey that made it possible was harrowing beyond imagination.

Hidden in a rice sack

Rudiger told BBC Sport Africa that his brother described the family's march of approximately 210 miles (340km) from their home district of Kono, in Sierra Leone's far east, to the capital Freetown. During the trek, with rebel forces threatening to abduct children and press them into service as soldiers, their uncle took desperate measures.