Paquetá: Filipe Luís made me nervous, faced pressure in 2019 | OneFootball

Lucas Paquetá ‘begged’ Filipe Luís to become a Flamengo player seven years ago

Filipe Luís and Lucas Paquetá were champions together in 2019 with the Brazilian National Team. However, at that time, both of their minds were on Flamengo. In an interview with ‘FlamengoTV’, the midfielder revealed that he ‘put pressure’ on the then left-back to wear the Sacred Mantle. And it worked.

— When I watched Flamengo winning, first of all, I celebrated a lot. Besides being a football player, I’m a Flamengo fan, I root for them. I looked at the titles… Throughout this whole process, I would pester several people. Filipe Luís was one of them. During the 2019 Copa América, I kept telling him ‘you need to go to Flamengo, you’re going to be an idol, trust me, the fans will love you’ — Paquetá revealed.

AND WHAT ABOUT THE CURRENT CONVERSATIONS?

If Lucas Paquetá ‘played the agent’ in 2019, the conversations in 2026 were different. The midfielder said he was anxious during talks with now-coach Filipe Luís, and vice versa. According to the new number 20 of Gávea, the coach’s desire played a fundamental role in his return to his boyhood club.

— Now, we talked all the time. I respect him a lot. One of the reasons I came was because he showed he really wanted me here. Flamengo didn’t need me, they won everything in 2019, and last year. They didn’t need me to win, but I needed them — said Paquetá.

— I told him that. And he replied: ‘I want you here; if we won everything, with you, we can win even more.’ We spent a month talking, he made me anxious, and I made him anxious too. But it was a very important exchange for me — concluded the number 20.

IS IT TIME TO MAKE NEW HISTORY?

After winning the 2019 Copa América with Filipe Luís, Paquetá now has the chance to win another title with his friend. This Sunday (01), the duo will be in Brasília to face Corinthians in the Supercopa do Brasil. The match will kick off at 4pm (Brasília time) at Estádio Mané Garrincha.

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