Ultimatum: São Paulo meet asking price, await Portuguese enforcer | OneFootball

São Paulo have made progress in negotiations to sign 31-year-old center-back Domingos Duarte. As AVANTE MEU TRICOLOR has learned, following a sign of interest from Greek side Olympiakos, the club’s board accepted the financial terms requested by the player, who is currently a free agent after the end of his contract with Getafe of Spain.

With the financial deadlock resolved, São Paulo’s hierarchy is awaiting a decision in the coming days. The Portuguese defender is expected to meet with his family and representatives to assess the possibility of moving to Brazilian football, weighing São Paulo’s project against competing offers from European clubs.

The internal view at Morumbi is that the club has exhausted its room for negotiation by matching the figures requested by the player. Given this, the board believes that any negative outcome in the deal would result exclusively from the player’s personal choice regarding his professional future.

As AVANTE MEU TRICOLOR revealed, at the request of president Harry Massis, the Morumbi club reopened talks with the Portuguese center-back.

Tricolor had ended negotiations to sign the 31-year-old, 1.92-meter-tall player after he asked for figures considered too high to play in Brazilian football and gave negative signals regarding different contract models presented by the team during the talks.

The turnaround began precisely last weekend. After learning of Rui Costa’s dismissal, Duarte’s agents approached São Paulo. Opposed to the defender’s stance of asking for more than had previously been agreed, the concern within his camp is the fact that he has not even received what they consider ideal approaches from Europe.

Duarte is seen by Tricolor as a key piece for its depleted defense, which lost Dória. A market opportunity considered unique. The club’s own directors emphasized to him and his camp that he would arrive as the undisputed starter in the position.

Having played for Sporting and Granada, as well as earning call-ups to the Portugal national team, the player brings the international experience required by the board. He had been playing for Getafe, also in La Liga, but his contract ends on June 30, allowing him to arrive without the purchase of rights.

Having played for Sporting and Granada, as well as earning call-ups to the Portugal national team, the player brings the international experience required by the board. He had been playing for Getafe, also in La Liga, but his contract ends on June 30, allowing him to arrive without the purchase of rights.

Duarte’s profile appealed because of his leadership, physical strength, aerial presence, and quality in playing out from the back.

He was already close to Brazilian football in 2019, when he even held talks with Flamengo as a replacement for Pablo Marí.

On the pitch, he is known as a ball-playing center-back, with good distribution, quality in the air, and reliability in organized defensive setups. His main traits are his reading of the game and his ability to start attacking moves from the back.

On the other hand, he is not a particularly quick defender, which means he performs better in systems with less exposed defensive lines and greater protection at the back.

São Paulo are looking for at least two more additions for their defensive unit. One of them will be an in-house solution: Arboleda will be reintegrated into the squad and made available to Dorival Júnior for the rest of the season.

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