Vitor Reis adds to Abel’s Palmeiras gems in Brazil squad | OneFootball

Former Palmeiras player, Vitor Reis joined the Brazilian National Team delegation in recent days to make up the squad that will play in the friendly against Croatia, the last one of this March FIFA window. The presence of the 20-year-old center back in the national team adds to the list of gems polished by Abel Ferreira at Verdão who have been called up to the National Team.

In addition to Vitor Reis, who is on loan from Manchester City to Girona, defensive midfielder Danilo, now at Botafogo, and Endrick, who plays for Lyon on loan from Real Madrid, are also training with the group led by coach Carlo Ancelotti. Another player developed by Palmeiras who has frequently appeared for the National Team, but was left out of Ancelotti’s latest squad, is Estêvão, of Chelsea.

All of them, developed at Verdão, worked with Abel Ferreira. Vitor Reis, Endrick, and Estêvão, in fact, were promoted to the first team by the Portuguese coach. Danilo, meanwhile, was already part of the senior squad when Abel and his coaching staff arrived at the club in October 2020.

The midfielder was promoted to the first team under Vanderlei Luxemburgo, Abel’s predecessor, but truly enjoyed his best form while working with the Portuguese coach. He was later sold to Nottingham Forest, returned to Brazilian football to play for Botafogo, and remains on Palmeiras’ radar for a possible return.

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Youth development and multimillion-dollar sales

Vitor Reis, Endrick, and Estêvão are part of the so-called “billion generation,” a nickname given to the crop of players that brought significant sums into the club’s coffers through transfers to European football. Palmeiras faced strong interest from the international market and sold its gems for high fees.

Endrick was transferred to Real Madrid in a deal worth around R$ 410 million at the time. Estêvão, meanwhile, was signed by Chelsea for about R$ 358 million. Vitor Reis, for his part, became the most expensive center back in Brazilian football history when he was transferred to Manchester City for approximately R$ 225 million.

Youth academy as a pillar of Abel’s work

Year after year, Abel Ferreira has strengthened his work through the use of Palmeiras’ youth academy. Of the current first-team squad, six players (Aranha, Arthur, Allan, Benedetti, Figueiredo, and Luighi) came through the club’s youth ranks. In addition, the coach also frequently relies on two other youngsters: 20-year-old Larson and 18-year-old Luís Pacheco.

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