Boto breaks silence, reveals why Gerson left Flamengo | OneFootball

Gerson left Flamengo in July this year after having renewed until 2030

Flamengo sold Gerson in the last transfer window to Zenit (RUS) in a lump-sum payment and for the release clause. After a long period of silence, José Boto, director of football at Mengão, commented on the negotiation, explained the reason for lowering the clause, and even took a jab at the midfielder by mentioning that the player aspired to a higher salary.

— I always had the feeling that Gerson, despite having renewed, aspired to a higher salary. It's natural, this is not a criticism. We also noticed that Zenit could come back with an offer. So, lowering the clause was to ensure we would receive the money upfront — said José Boto in an interview with ‘UOL’ this Monday (15).

— If we had kept the previous values, it would have required another negotiation, with installment payments and wear and tear. What we thought was: let's set a value that the club can pay upfront. This was agreed with Gerson’s staff — concluded the Flamengo director of football.

WHEN DID GERSON LEAVE FLAMENGO?

Flamengo renewed with Gerson in April this year. The former red-and-black midfielder had a contract until December 2027, but with the extension, he became tied to the Most Beloved until 2030. However, it was at this moment that Mengão lowered the release clause but required the payment to be made upfront.

Three months later, in July, Flamengo completed the sale of Gerson to Zenit. The Russian club paid the release clause of 25 million euros (R$ 160 million at the exchange rate at the time) upfront. Thus, the deal became the third largest sale in Mengão’s history, behind only Vinicius Júnior and Reinier, both to Real Madrid (ESP).

AND WHAT ABOUT FLAMENGO?

With the departure of Gerson, Flamengo signed Jorginho and Saúl Ñíguez, who have become crucial players and won over the fans. With both available, Flamengo is focusing on the next fixtures of the season. Mengão faces Estudiantes (ARG) on Thursday (18th), for the Copa Libertadores.

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