Almada talks: José Boto on Argentina trip, “Flamengo won’t bid up” | OneFootball

Flamengo’s football director explained details of the negotiations involving midfielder Thiago Almada

The transfer window is open until September 11. However, with an eye on strengthening the squad for the Libertadores round of 16, Flamengo is racing against time to reach a conclusion in negotiations for midfielder Thiago Almada.

That is why Flamengo football director José Boto went to Argentina to personally handle the talks. Upon returning to Brazil in the early hours of this Tuesday (04), the executive spoke openly about Thiago Almada’s situation.

Speaking to journalists at the airport, José Boto made it clear that he did not go to Argentina to try to convince Almada of Flamengo’s greatness. In that sense, the football director stressed that Fla will not get into a bidding war with any club. Therefore, if the midfielder wants to accept the red-and-black club’s offer, it will be under the conditions Flamengo presented.

What did José Boto say?

“The reason I went to Argentina was not to convince Almada. It would be stupid if I had to go there to convince him of Flamengo’s greatness. There were several matters I had to deal with there in Flamengo’s interest. One of them, of course, was Almada. I went there to make it very clear to them that we would not enter any bidding wars, meaning that what we had already agreed is what it will be if he wants to come to Flamengo.

People talk a lot of nonsense, they say a lot of things they know nothing about. Do you know, do you have any idea, how many negotiations worth 20 million euros or more have been completed in the history of Brazilian football? Seven. Two by Flamengo, two by Palmeiras, two by Botafogo, and one by Cruzeiro, all of them done in the last two years. Almada himself was one of them in the year Botafogo became champions. There have been seven transfers, done by four clubs. There were four presidents and four football directors who have ever been involved in transfers above twenty million.

We have to stick together, because it won’t be easy until the end of the year, and we cannot listen to people who speak about what they do not know. Almada may come, someone else may come, or no one may come, but if someone does come, be sure that Flamengo’s president (Bap) is as much of a fan as all of you, or even more. He will not let the club collapse. And many times, in that urge to bring in a big name, a player of this level, the club ends up being broken.

So I want to tell people to stay calm because, if any player comes, he will come on Flamengo’s terms, not through bidding wars. Almada has never told us he did not want Flamengo. What we told Almada and his staff is that we do not enter bidding wars.”

Is Flamengo optimistic about the deal?

In addition, football director José Boto also said there is optimism about completing the deal for Almada. However, he made it clear that Flamengo will not wait forever for the midfielder. The idea at Rubro-Negro is to be patient, but only up to a point.

“There is optimism, yes. But we are not going to wait forever, right? Although, as I said before, signings of this value require patience. We have to be patient so we don’t pay more than we should. We are not going to wait forever and we are not going to enter bidding wars with other clubs that are interested and other clubs that are not interested, but are pretending to be because that is part of the game to drive up the player’s price,” said Boto.

What is making the negotiation difficult at the moment?

“You know that when you pay these kinds of amounts, the payment terms are very important, right? One thing is paying 20 million in one year, another is paying 20 million in two, another is paying 20 in three or five. And that makes all the difference in a negotiation. And obviously, when I’m selling, I want to be paid quickly, at most within two years. On the other side, it’s the same thing. So these are processes that take time, and they require patience so that no more is paid than should be.

On the other hand, there is something else that people sometimes forget: when we say a transfer costs 20 or 30 million, it is 20, plus 18% tax. Something that does not exist in other countries. When it is 20, it is not ‘just’ 20, it is almost 24 million euros, right? If it is 30, it is not ‘just’ 30, it is 36 million euros. And that also makes a difference. If it were easy to sign players in the prime of their careers at 25 years old, as is the case with Almada, there would not have been only 7 such negotiations in the history of Brazilian football.

Then finally, I want to leave a message for all the fans: today, many people criticize the amounts paid for this and for that. But we cannot want players, what do you call them, marquee players, right? Players at the peak of their careers, and pay as if they were prospects. In Portugal we say this: ‘eating lobster at the price of sardines does not exist, and neither does eating sardines thinking you are eating lobster,’ okay?” he said.

And Luiz Henrique?

Finally, regarding other negotiations, José Boto was straightforward in saying that: “Flamengo does not focus on just one player. Sometimes Flamengo plays on several boards.” That, of course, excites the fans about a possible parallel negotiation for Luiz Henrique.

Watch José Boto’s full interview:

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