Carlos Miguel shrugs off Palmeiras banter, eyes huge fresh start | OneFootball

The goalkeeper Carlos Miguel was introduced as the tenth reinforcement for Palmeiras this season. This Friday, at the Football Academy, the 26-year-old athlete, standing at 2.05m, dismissed any controversies about teasing his current club when he was still at Corinthians. He also explained his decision to return to Brazil and his choice for Verdão.

“When there was all the buzz about me coming to Palmeiras, the fans were very happy, unlike the rivals, who released a video of me (teasing Palmeiras). It was a video from when I was very immature, very young, I made a silly joke, a childish prank, something from a young player coming from the youth academy, normal. Now I have a very big future ahead of me and for me, the past is gone. I just have to be grateful for what lies ahead and what Palmeiras provides me,” explained the goalkeeper, who signed with Verdão until July 2030.

While his name was being speculated at the club, rival fans retrieved a video of Carlos Miguel teasing Palmeiras about the World Cup issue. In the announcement video of his arrival, the club took advantage of the theme and made the video based on the tournament won by Verdão in 1951.

Currently, he arrives to compete for the position with Weverton, the current starter for coach Abel Ferreira. He praised the work of the number 21, who was elected the best player of the match last Thursday, in the goalless draw with Universitario-PER, for the Libertadores.

“Everyone already knows Weverton's history, his career, the person he is. An incredible human being. I was very well received by him. The issue of being a goalkeeper is totally different from a regular outfield player, who has many more game opportunities. The goalkeeper always has to be prepared,” he said.

“If I'm not mistaken, I have 28, 30 professional games and I've already shown why I came to where I am. The fact that I arrived at Palmeiras was not by chance. You don't need many games to show it, everyone here already knows my quality and what I am capable of doing. I'm not afraid to do it and I'm not afraid to speak either. And for me, it's a great joy, very happy to be here, and it's just a huge recognition for me.”

Return “by instinct”

The goalkeeper left Brazil in 2024 heading to Nottingham Forest shortly after taking over as the starter at Corinthians following Cássio's departure. However, in England, Carlos Miguel had little playing time and participated in only two matches. He explained the difficulties he faced in Europe, with learning a new language, and said that the decision to return was “by instinct.”

“It's not about consolidating myself. I could have stayed there, the club didn't want to send me away, as many said, it was even difficult to get released to come here. It wasn't by chance that I decided to return. I feel things, and when I feel that I didn't fit in and wasn't sure if I was 100% there, because I didn't learn English very quickly. It took me five or six months to learn English, but I managed to communicate, I learned things very quickly. I'm a guy who adapts very quickly. The decision to return was really instinctive, when it hits your mind: ‘go play at Palmeiras, you'll be happy there, one day you can return to Europe’. I'm capable of that, I've already shown everyone, and I'm not afraid to say it,” he concluded.

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