Palmeiras’ teen defender hails Gómez, talks Vitor Roque friendship | OneFootball

The defender Koné began his journey at Palmeiras in November 2025, when he officially signed with the Verdão club shortly after turning 18 years old. A native of Ivory Coast, the defender, even before his first matches, had already caught the attention of the professional coaching staff and began training under Abel Ferreira.

During this adaptation period, the defender has been making every effort to talk with his club teammates in order to learn Portuguese. In the locker room, he revealed a close relationship with Vitor Roque and was surprised by Gustavo Gómez’s routine.

“I got there, I was very shy, quiet. My spot was near his (Vitor Roque). One day he came to talk to me, he told me that you have to be humble and work hard to always get better,” he revealed.

“I’m a very funny guy, I talk a lot with the guys, we joke around a lot. I talk a lot with them to learn faster. When you stay quiet, you don’t learn as quickly, you have to talk to get by faster,” he said.

Gómez’s routine “impresses”

Koné has seen up close the routine of the professional players and was “impressed” by the routine of defender and captain Gustavo Gómez. The Paraguayan, who wears the armband in matches, is one of the main leaders of the squad.

“The structure, the players—there are a lot of famous players that we knew in Europe. Gustavo Gómez works a lot, he arrives very early at the gym, works a lot, he really works hard, gets there before everyone and gets things done,” he said.

Koné details his characteristics

The defender caught Verdão’s attention while playing in a tournament in Ghana, where a scout from the São Paulo team was present. Koné was unable to play in the São Paulo Junior Football Cup, but made his debut for Palmeiras in this edition of the Under-20 Brazilian Championship. The player started in all three matches.

“There was a tournament in Ghana, my team was registered in the tournament and there was a Palmeiras scout there. They saw me playing and then I went to talk to my team, I came here to do a trial that lasted almost three months. Brazil is the country of football, everyone plays football here, it’s a big country too. It was a great feeling for me.”

Standing at 1.93 meters tall, Koné highlighted some of his characteristics.

“I’m a defender who plays well out from the back, who is very, very skillful, who knows how to mark very strongly. It’s very rare to find a left-footed defender and nowadays it’s very difficult to find a left-footed defender. It’s a privilege for me too,” he summed up.

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