Bap hails Flamengo, explains new transfer plan: “We must sign…”

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·28 March 2026

Bap hails Flamengo, explains new transfer plan: “We must sign…”

Flamengo made the biggest investment in its history in the latest transfer window

The latest transfer window went down in Flamengo's history. After all, the Rubro-Negro made the biggest investment in the club’s 130-year history by signing Lucas Paquetá from West Ham (ENG). Flamengo president Luiz Eduardo Baptista, known as Bap, explained the club’s new approach in negotiations.

No club in Brazil or South America has made signings, in both quantity and quality, like we have in the last nine months. We made an effort to bring in younger players, with a very low injury history, who would add to the squad. Flamengo doesn’t sign just any player, it signs the player. When you have a clearly defined target, the product gets more expensive, because the market starts to understand that you operate that way. We’ve been studying how to make as few mistakes as possible in the profile of the players we bring in because we’ve learned from our mistakes. Many times, that player is not available on the market when you want him. We don’t go to the mall to buy a shirt and come back with a pair of pants that was on sale. We try to bring in the player who will fit the squad perfectly. For each position, we need two players, not counting any problems that may arise. We have to bring in players who play to win everything over the full 90 minutes. We always plan for what lies ahead. It’s not like we had a mediocre transfer window. You need money and you need to know exactly what you want. How many top-class center forwards in the world are actually available for us to sign? The center forward we want costs 32 to 40 million euros, and that’s to be Pedro’s backup. It’s squad management. We no longer sign just one isolated piece,” Bap concluded in an interview with ‘Mengocast’.

What was Flamengo’s latest transfer window like?

Flamengo signed three new players in the first transfer window of 2026. On that occasion, the Rubro-Negro reached agreements for goalkeeper Andrew, center back Vitão, and midfielder Lucas Paquetá. The former West Ham (ENG) player, in fact, became the most expensive signing in Mengão's history.

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Andrew, Gil Vicente (POR) – 1.5 million euros (R$ 9.4 million)
Vitão, Internacional – 10 million euros (R$ 65 million)
Lucas Paquetá, West Ham – 42 million euros (R$ 260 million)
Total: R$ 334.4 million

Is Flamengo targeting new signings?

Despite making three ‘major’ signings, Flamengo still has one priority for the next transfer window: a center forward. The search for a new striker to rotate with Pedro has been going on since Filipe Luís’ time.

When does the next window open?

It is important to note that the second transfer window will be open from July 20 to September 11. Therefore, Flamengo’s focus is on solving the ‘lack’ of a center forward. It is no surprise that the Rubro-Negro is already keeping a close eye on the market.

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