Crespo reveals São Paulo secrets, calls on club power players | OneFootball

Coach Hernán Crespo analyzed the turbulence in São Paulo’s political backstage after the 3-0 victory over Internacional this Wednesday, at Vila Belmiro, in Santos, during the penultimate round of the Brazilian Championship.

With the departure of football director Carlos Belmonte and assistant directors Fernando Chapecó and Nelson Ferreira after the heavy defeat against Fluminense at Maracanã, the political game at São Paulo is beginning to take shape for the 2026 presidential elections, and the team’s coach, Hernán Crespo, knows that all of this could have consequences for the squad.

“When a team wins, the fans, the board, the coaching staff, and the players are all together. At that moment, there is a lot of energy. Everyone is aligned, moving in the same direction, which is to improve São Paulo. The hope is that next season will be another very political year, we know what happens. I hope those involved can understand that these political difficulties affect the squad,” said the São Paulo coach.

Carlos Belmonte is seen as one of the probable candidates for the São Paulo presidency in 2026, opposing the candidate supported by the current president, Julio Casares, whose name has not yet been revealed. If this is confirmed, the current club president and the former football director, who spent five years working side by side, will be on completely opposite sides in the elections.

In recent weeks, Carlos Belmonte had lost influence as head of the football department after, by decision of Julio Casares, Márcio Carlomagno, São Paulo’s CEO, began working at the Barra Funda training center, assisting with decisions related to professional football. Amid all this, the team had not been able to perform well on the field, suffering results below expectations in this final stretch of the Brazilian Championship.

“Yes, I can understand that it will be a politically difficult year and that they must have the ability to fight correctly to reach the presidency without affecting the squad, the football, which is the most important thing. Political issues, I think, are individual objectives for everyone that affect collective goals. They have a very big responsibility, it’s not easy, but I’ll ask just one thing: that this political year does not affect the squad’s year,” Hernán Crespo added.

Shielding the squad from any political clashes behind the scenes at the club will be fundamental if the Argentine coach wants to have a calmer year than 2025, especially if the long-awaited spot in the Pre-Libertadores is confirmed. Definitely, calm seas are not promised for Hernán Crespo at the helm of São Paulo next season.

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