Interest from abroad complicates São Paulo's plans to extend Lucas deal | OneFootball

São Paulo’s board saw the initial talks over renewing attacking midfielder Lucas’s contract come to an abrupt halt in recent days, and the club legend’s stay at Morumbi through 2027 has become a real question mark for the directors.

As AVANTE MEU TRICOLOR learned from sources within São Paulo’s top brass, the new injury to the No. 7, who is sidelined with two fractured ribs, has by itself already put the talks on hold. But there are other reasons as well.

Lucas and his staff have already received two concrete inquiries from clubs abroad: one from the U.S. and another from the Arab world, more specifically Qatar, though the club’s name was kept confidential by the sources consulted by the report.

Neither inquiry has turned into an offer yet, but they are already enough to set off alarm bells for São Paulo behind the scenes.

Officially, Lucas asked the club to wait until the break in the schedule for the World Cup to have the clearest possible picture of his future. At 33, the attacking midfielder is looking for the much-talked-about “last big contract of his career.” And at Morumbi, they know they cannot compete with the financial power of those markets.

On top of that, there is the legend’s own desire. Lucas has never hidden that one of his life goals is to live in the United States. He was even negotiating a move to MLS in 2023 before ultimately following his heart and accepting a return to Tricolor to be a key pillar in the club’s historic first Copa do Brasil title. The fact that the U.S. market remains open weighs considerably.

Lucas is under contract with São Paulo until the end of the year. From the club’s side, the plan is to offer a new deal of no more than two years, with no salary increase. That is a factor in his deliberation, along with, of course, the distrust from part of the fanbase, which has replaced adoration with criticism amid the string of injuries he has suffered lately.

São Paulo is counting on the adaptation of the No. 7’s children as a factor in the negotiations. Since his return, the player’s children have shown an established routine in the city of São Paulo, and the oldest has even started following in his father’s footsteps by enrolling in a soccer school.

In 2026, Lucas has made 16 appearances, scoring three goals and providing one assist. So far, his best season since returning to São Paulo was in 2024, when he posted 14 goals and 10 assists in 47 matches.

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