Cotia youngsters shielded at São Paulo amid high hopes: “They need freedom” | OneFootball

The coach of São Paulo, Hernán Crespo, sought to shield the youngsters revealed in Cotia from the responsibility of "saving" the club in the next season. Without a budget to invest in major reinforcements, the club is expected to rely on many young players to make up the squad for 2026, but it seems that none of them will bear the weight of being a protagonist.

"At this moment, I am thinking about the present. That's the reality. Having Lucca, Paulinho, Pedro, Maik, Negrucci at this moment is convenient because they are in the rhythm of the under-20s, but thinking about a project, building, giving them the responsibility for the future of São Paulo, is not fair. It's a process. With calm. At this moment, they are playing because they are available to play, they have game rhythm. Now thinking about what will happen next season... my admiration for them exists, but not for that reason do they need to have the responsibility of the next season. They can play and even be protagonists, but let's take it easy," said Crespo.

This Sunday, in the 2-1 victory over Juventude, three players trained in Cotia were called upon by Crespo during the match. Lucca replaced Ferreirinha, Paulinho came in for Luciano, and Luiz Gustavo was substituted for Negrucci.

Lucca, by the way, was one of São Paulo's standout players, making a difference in the second half even while playing improvised on the left wing.

"They don't have to take on anything, they have to play freely, be free, because they are young. Try to help, with the hope of maybe becoming a protagonist. We can't think that at 20 years old they will be starters and play with the weight of responsibility of a big team like São Paulo. We have to create a solid base to give them the opportunity to show what they can do. Can they become starters? Of course, they can. But, we are talking about a group of players who haven't even finished their first year in the under-20s. I think it's a bit early to give them that responsibility," concluded Crespo.

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