Arboleda returns… but in Ecuador's second tier, not for São Paulo | OneFootball

The crisis between Robert Arboleda and São Paulo took a new turn on Wednesday night (8), when the center back was spotted attending an Ecuadorian second-division match between Atlético FC and 22 de Julio in Guayaquil. The defender has been in his home country since the end of last week, after failing to report back for the match against Cruzeiro in the Brazilian Championship, and has since remained without giving any official explanation to the club.

São Paulo’s board responded to the player’s disappearance with a formal notice, setting a ten-day deadline for him to return to Brazil. If the order is not complied with, the club’s legal department is already considering terminating his contract for cause, which could take the dispute to FIFA and lead to the collection of the termination penalty, valued at R$ 300 million for the domestic market.

The internal outrage at Morumbi is heightened by the fact that the club had recently helped Arboleda financially, paying off the player’s personal debts, which exceeded R$ 600,000. Given the center back’s dissatisfaction with being on the bench and the irreparable breakdown with the coaching staff, the current scenario indicates that the defender’s time at the club is heading toward a litigious ending in court.

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