Breaking: Scarpa's bleak reply sees São Paulo halt talks | OneFootball

São Paulo have officially suspended talks over the loan signing of attacking midfielder Gustavo Scarpa.

The club’s board opted to withdraw the offer after receiving an unenthusiastic response from the player’s camp late last Friday night (21).

The main obstacle to a positive outcome in the deal was the player’s demand that São Paulo take on the financial debts Atlético-MG owes him.

Although the Minas Gerais club approved the loan move to the Tricolor Paulista, Scarpa refused to leave the team without those issues being resolved, which would include image rights, bonuses, and signing fees.

Given the player’s high monthly cost — with wages reaching around R$ 1.2 million — added to the burden of third-party debts, São Paulo’s hierarchy believes that continuing the talks would be unfeasible for the club’s financial planning.

Despite the talks cooling off, part of the club’s leadership wants to keep negotiating with the player’s agents in search of an agreement. Mainly because they have Atlético-MG’s guarantee to release him if they cover the 32-year-old’s wages through the end of the year, which the São Paulo side accepted.

THE NEGOTIATION

São Paulo’s understanding is that the 32-year-old wants to play at Morumbi, but also wants guarantees — especially from Atlético-MG — that he will receive what he is owed. That is why the deal is not considered completely off the table.

The Tricolor offer accepted by the Minas Gerais side provides for a temporary move with a purchase option clause with no performance targets attached, set at around 2 million euros (approximately R$ 12.2 million at the current exchange rate). A new contract with a salary adjustment would only be discussed if the São Paulo club exercises the option to sign him permanently at the end of the initial deal.

Scarpa is going through a long spell of inactivity and has a recent injury history that has raised red flags at Morumbi.

The 32-year-old has not played an official match for Atlético-MG in more than three months and is currently under the care of the medical department.

The midfielder’s last appearance on the pitch came on May 5, in the 2-2 draw against Juventud-URU in the Copa Sudamericana. Since then, Scarpa was included on the bench for the clashes against Juventude in the Copa do Brasil round of 16, but was not used by choice of the Minas Gerais coaching staff.

Scarpa was diagnosed on the 7th with edema in the adductor muscle of his right thigh.

Despite the physical setback, Atlético’s initial assessment at the time was optimistic: the issue is not considered serious, and the expectation is that the player will be cleared to resume ball training in the coming days.

The forecast was that Scarpa would not spend more than two weeks away from on-field work.

The new injury came precisely at a time when the midfielder was expecting to return to the squad’s routine. After undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right knee in May, he completed his recovery process and was cleared by the medical department at the end of July to be called up again.

Head coach Eduardo Domínguez’s staff were counting on the player’s return to strengthen the squad amid the run of games in the Brasileirão, Copa do Brasil, and Copa Sudamericana.

AN OLD STORY

The link between São Paulo and Gustavo Scarpa goes back a long way. In 2018, Tricolor monitored the player as his contract with Fluminense, where he came through the ranks, was coming to an end, but at the time his preference was to join rivals Palmeiras.

Even before returning to Atlético-MG in January 2024, Scarpa had already been approached other times by the Morumbi club.

The latest inquiry came at the end of April, as revealed by AVANTE MEU TRICOLOR, but on that occasion, despite mutual interest between the São Paulo side and the player, there was no agreement with Atlético’s board for his release.

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