José Boto on Flamengo's poor use of youth: “The focus here is…” | OneFootball

What did José Boto say about Flamengo’s youth academy?

Flamengo is known for having one of the best youth academies in Brazilian football. However, the Rubro-Negro has not been able to make the most of its young players in recent seasons. Fla’s football director, José Boto, explained the lack of opportunities for the youngsters.

— What defines Flamengo is that phrase over there [on the office wall], which is ‘Win, win, win.’ Here, there is no other option. There is no such thing as ‘we made I don’t know how much money from sales’; there are none of those cultures that, for example, we have in Portugal, of making the club financially profitable through the sale or development of players -, he said, before concluding:

— Here, the focus is completely on winning. And that’s what you have to adapt to. And that’s what I tried to do, bringing in ready-made players with experience, because it’s not easy to play for Flamengo. The pressure of playing at the Maracanã is very high and, because of that, players need to have certain psychological traits, experience, and maturity -, Boto concluded, to newspaper ‘A Bola’.

Will Leonardo Jardim give more opportunities to the youth academy?

It is worth noting that one of Leonardo Jardim’s goals during the break for the World Cup is to test some of Flamengo’s promising youngsters, who could be fully integrated into the squad in the second half of the year. After all, the young Rubro-Negro players will have the opportunity to train with the first team.

This is because nine Flamengo players were called up for the World Cup. In other words, during Mengão’s mid-season training camp during the world tournament, Leonardo Jardim is expected to call up some youngsters from the Rubro-Negro academy.

What is Flamengo’s plan?

At the moment, the Flamengo squad is enjoying its vacation due to the break in the calendar caused by the World Cup. Mengão’s next match in 2026 is scheduled for July 22, against Chapecoense, in the 19th round of the Brasileirão.

Before that, however, Flamengo will hold a mid-season training camp in Portugal, including three friendlies. Thus, on Portuguese soil, the Rubro-Negro will face Falkirk (SCO), Birmingham (ENG), and Benfica (POR).

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