In England, Rayan says he watches Vasco derbies: “I make a point”

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Papo na Colina

·30 marzo 2026

In England, Rayan says he watches Vasco derbies: “I make a point”

Vasco da Gama is going through a restructuring phase in the Brazilian Championship, currently sitting in ninth place in the table with eleven points from the first eight matches. The team has shown clear tactical improvement since coach Renato Gaúcho took charge, using the break caused by the FIFA international window to address the squad’s serious defensive flaws.

Although the Giant of the Hill did not have any player from the current squad called up to the Brazilian National Team in this particular selection, Vasco fans felt extremely well represented by a homegrown talent: young Rayan, now a player for Bournemouth in England.

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After standing out in a Vasco shirt in 2025, securing a multimillion-dollar move to European football and earning his dream spot in Brazil’s senior national team, the forward made it very clear that he has not forgotten his Rio roots. In an exclusive interview given to TNT Sports this Monday (30), the player made an important revelation about his strong connection with the club that developed him and with the athletes who still wear Vasco’s colors in the domestic calendar.

+ Real Madrid and PSG are monitoring Rayan and raise Vasco’s hopes for a multimillion-dollar windfall

The time difference and missing Vasco

Despite the enormous logistical difficulty caused by the time difference with Europe, which pushes kickoff times in Brazil into the middle of the night in England, the player said he always tries to follow the club he loves. He highlighted that the effort increases considerably when the schedule features thrilling regional clashes at the Maracanã:

“I try to watch the games, but in England’s time zone it gets very late. But when it’s a derby, I make sure to watch. I still have friends there, so I follow the matches. There’s Robert Renan, Cauan Barros, who I still chat a lot with to this day.”

In addition to emphasizing the strong friendship he still has with his former youth-team and first-team teammates at Vasco, Rayan also made a point of addressing the cultural importance of keeping the traditional banter and teasing alive in state derbies. For the forward, this dynamic is an essential part of football and should be nurtured wisely and joyfully by everyone involved in the spectacle, always maintaining mutual respect.

The youngster, who emerged as the biggest breakout star of last season’s Brasileirão, argued in favor of healthy joking between Rio rivals:

“It’s part of football, the sport has to be more relaxed, more joyful too. But it can’t go beyond the limit of joking around. Don’t take it too far, keep it where it’s good for football. That’s it: the fans like it, the players like it. You have to know how to provoke.”

See this photo on Instagram A post shared by TNT Sports Brasil (@tntsportsbr)

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