Santos see Arão make an impact despite injury, keep faith in the midfielder | OneFootball

Hired at the beginning of July, Willian Arão has yet to establish a sequence at Santos. The midfielder is struggling with edema and has spent little time on the field in the black and white jersey. Even so, the board sees the 33-year-old player as an important piece.

The football executive Alexandre Mattos revealed that the player himself is bothered by the situation, but he shared behind-the-scenes details of how he is helping off the field.

"Arão himself is bothered that he has not yet been able to contribute, but we have enormous confidence. He has been contributing in the locker room. In the last game, on Zé Ivaldo's return, Arão took him aside in the locker room for 10, 15 minutes to talk. I'm sure it helped a lot with Zé's confidence. I'm sure he will help us a lot, he's almost ready, it's a medical issue. It's not serious, but it's something that's been bothering him," he said.

Mattos also assured that Arão arrived at Vila Belmiro without any injury.

"He played against Flamengo. He wouldn't have gone in injured. He didn't come with an injury. Players only go on the field 100%. His history is of few injuries. He had edema in a specific and rare area. This has been bothering him, but we're sure he will help us. He has been alternating good moments with some of pain. This is making it difficult. He even made himself available for the last game, but Vojvoda asked him to recover more. The expectation is that he will be against Atlético-MG or São Paulo," he declared.

Willian Arão played for only five minutes for Santos, in the 1-0 victory over Flamengo, at Vila Belmiro, on July 16, for the 14th round of the Brazilian Championship.

On the 25th of the same month, Santos reported that the midfielder presented a muscular edema in the region of the right calf. Since then, he has been handed over to the medical department. Currently, the club claims that he is in physical transition.

Even with the lack of games, Alexandre Mattos ruled out any possibility of Arão leaving the Alvinegro Praiano at the moment.

"There is no possibility of Arão leaving. He is bothered, yes, with this situation. He wants to play. He didn't come here to receive a salary, he came to contribute, we believe in him and trust him. We trust the medical department that things will go well. He is giving a lot and will soon contribute to bring happiness to the fans," he concluded.

Upcoming Santos games

Atlético-MG x Santos (23rd round of the Brazilian Championship) Date and time: September 14 (Sunday), at 4pm (Brasília time) Location: Arena MRV, in Belo Horizonte (MG)

Santos x São Paulo (24th round of the Brazilian Championship) Date and time: September 21 (Sunday), at 8:30pm (Brasília time) Location: Vila Belmiro, in Santos (SP)

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.