Arboleda and Luciano's agents seek Arab move, farewell looming? | OneFootball

The São Paulo board has not officially confirmed it, but behind the scenes they are working with the possibility that some of the team’s star players might end up leaving the squad. This way, they could reduce the payroll and bring new energy to the group. The first wish comes from the directors. The second, from Hernán Crespo.

And, perhaps aware of the club’s plan for their clients, the agents of defender Arboleda and forward Luciano are currently traveling, determined to secure offers for the players to leave Tricolor in 2026. Preferably, a hefty contract, especially with a team from the Arab world.

This information was obtained by AVANTE MEU TRICOLOR throughout this Tuesday (9th). Club sources deny it and say that the duo, who have already become a kind of São Paulo symbol, are not being put up for sale. But the facts were confirmed by three people connected to the two players, one of them very close to the number 10.

The internal message within the club’s professional football is that the two are not for sale. However, if something good comes up for both sides, a deal could be made.

Leaving São Paulo is not necessarily a new expectation for either Arboleda or Luciano. The defender, for example, went through a long period of negotiations over his last contract renewal, even rejecting the first two offers made by Tricolor, and during that time he was approached by Cruzeiro and flirted with Corinthians. Yes, with the rival. The Ecuadorian listened to a wild proposal from their then-president, Augusto Melo, who dreamed of taking an idol from an arch-enemy. But in reality, he only used this to pressure the board to extend his contract.

At 34 years old, Arboleda has a contract with São Paulo until the end of 2027. He is the longest-serving player in the squad—he’s been at the club since June 2017—and has three titles, 24 goals, five assists, and is already the fourth foreigner with the most appearances in São Paulo’s history, behind only Argentine José Poy (525) and Uruguayans Dario Pereyra (453) and Pedro Rocha (392).

Luciano also went through turbulent times during his last contract renewal. But he went against his agents’ advice and stayed at São Paulo. At the time, he already had a big offer from a club in Saudi Arabia (advantageous for him, but not so much for the club). He chose to remain at Morumbi and became one of the highest-paid players in the squad (this was before Oscar’s arrival).

Since then, he has once again been frequently targeted by the Brazilian market. Tricolor almost formalized a swap deal involving him and Guilherme from Santos in the middle of the year. And recently, Vasco approached his agents to inquire about values for a possible deal. At 32, he only has a contract until the end of next year, which is putting pressure on the board to arrange a transfer. With 17 goals in 58 games, he was São Paulo’s top scorer of the year.

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