Lelê starts 2026 as Fluminense’s main man in the Carioca | OneFootball

Forward Lelê begins the 2026 season with a new opportunity to prove himself in the tricolor jersey. Back after a loan spell, the player has been reintegrated into the squad and will be one of the options used by Fluminense in the opening rounds of the Campeonato Carioca.

With the main group scheduled to debut only in the 5th round, Lelê will already be on the field on January 14th, against Madureira, at Maracanã.

According to sources close to the club, the forward has been training among the athletes who make up the alternative team prepared for the start of the state championship. The coaching staff sees the Campeonato Carioca as a strategic period for observation, especially since coach Zubeldía has not yet had the chance to evaluate Lelê in official matches since taking charge of the team.

Although he has a contract for another two years, the player's stay for the rest of the season is not guaranteed. Internally, even with John Kennedy’s early return to training in an attempt to regain his place in the main squad, the sequence of matches in the Campeonato Carioca is considered decisive for Lelê. The state championship is seen by both the club and the player's staff as an important showcase, whether to convince the coaching staff to keep him in the group or to attract new offers in the market.

The tricolor board, in fact, considers the center forward position one of the priorities in the current transfer window, which increases competition in the sector.

Lelê is trying to regain the space he lost after the start of 2025. Last season, he was initially loaned to Ceará, where he played nine matches. Later, he moved to Atlético-GO, where he performed better: 17 games, one assist, and six goals, finishing the year as the top scorer for the Goiás team in Série B.

At Fluminense, the forward has, between 2023 and 2024, 53 matches, eight goals, and five assists, in addition to being part of the squad that won the Libertadores and the Recopa.

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