São Paulo bow to Russian pressure, sell Henrique do Carmo for peanuts | OneFootball

The Jewel of Cotia is ready to leave Morumbi (Rubens Chiri/SPFC)

RAFAEL EMILIANO@rafaelemilianoo

São Paulo is close to making one of the worst deals in its history.

At least that's the conclusion we can draw after the confirmation of information initially released by the portal 'Lance' that the Morumbi club accepted the Russian insistence and proceeded with the sale of striker Henrique do Carmo to CSKA.

Well, it was the second offer from the Moscow club, which has already secured the signing of another gem from the tricolor base, Matheus Alves.

After rejecting an offer of approximately 3.5 million euros (about R$ 22.2 million), the Julio Casares management found the Russian counterproposal appealing. But we already anticipate that the amount is absurd: 6 million euros fixed (R$ 38.1 million), plus the possibility of 1 million euros (R$ 6.4 million) if goals are met. The Tricolor would retain 25% of the player's economic rights. Pathetic, as you can see.

The deal, close to being finalized, was sealed on the night of this Monday (8), after Henrique do Carmo accepted the three-season contract with CSKA. Remembering that he had a contract until the end of 2028 with São Paulo, renewed at the beginning of this year.

According to AVANTE MEU TRICOLOR, Matheus Alves, by the way, was one of the main pillars of the negotiation, telling his apprehensive friend about life in isolated Russia.

This is the third European offer for the revelation that was rejected by the club. At the beginning of August, São Paulo dismissed negotiations with PSV, from the Netherlands. Previously, an approach from Shakhtar Donetsk, from Ukraine, had already been turned down by the Brazilians.

The Morumbi club even initially agreed to continue negotiations with PSV to release Henrique for the amount of 1 million euros (about R$ 6.3 million) for a one-season loan.

What held things up was the fee for the clause for the player's definitive negotiation after the period. Despite the bargaining, the Dutch did not raise the amount of 6 million euros (approximately R$ 37.9 million).

São Paulo rejected an offer of 7 million euros (R$ 44.4 million at the current rate) from Shakhtar Donetsk, from Ukraine, at the beginning of the year. It even tried to bargain with PSV, indicating that it could close the deal if the total proposal (loan fee and young player's purchase) reached 8 million euros (about R$ 50.8 million), in addition to retaining at least 20% of the rights for a future negotiation.

The context, however, was different. Henrique was uncertain about his future at Morumbi, as he had a contract only until the end of this year, potentially allowing him to sign a pre-agreement with anyone he wanted. In other words, the amount would reflect a way for the Tricolor not to be left empty-handed in the event of the jewel's departure.

To make matters worse, São Paulo was experiencing a backstage problem with the jewel's agent, Wagner Ribeiro, who used his social media to attack the club's former coach, Luis Zubeldía, for not giving the player chances, in addition to accusing him of offending and humiliating club professionals.

Now, the jewel has renewed his contract and has a contract with the Tricolor until the end of 2028.

Henrique was promoted to the Tricolor professionals at the beginning of last year's Brazilian Championship, precisely as a way to try to cool European interest and convince him to renew the contract.

But the lack of opportunities weighed heavily. That year, he only played in the 2-1 victory against Vitória, at Morumbi.

Now, having been working at Barra Funda for almost a year, Henrique was being frequently used by coach Hernán Crespo and had won the fans' admiration, becoming a kind of talisman who enters the final stages and ignites the opponents.

This is the third departure of a great talent from the base just in this window. Before him and Matheus Alves, the Morumbi club had already agreed to Lucas Ferreira's move to Ukrainian football.

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