Paquetá picks Flamengo number 20 for Vini Jr, vows to keep it a surprise | OneFootball

Lucas Paquetá will wear Flamengo's number 20 in tribute to his friend Vini Jr, keeping the choice a surprise for the Real Madrid forward.

"Twenty is Vini, right? I said, 'I will take Vini's'. I did not actually tell him, but he already knows it is because of him. I was checking which shirts were free, and I like 20. As he has already played here, I chose 20. I did not tell him. I will let him see, he will know it is because of him," he told FlamengoTV.

At West Ham he wore 10, but that number is Arrascaeta's at Flamengo, so Paquetá opted for the available 20, avoiding any friction. It has been vacant since Matheus Gonçalves left midway through last year.

His presentation is expected on Friday 30, when he will wear 20 for the first time. Before leaving in 2018 he used 39 and 11, the former is free and the latter belongs to Everton Cebolinha.

His debut in the 20 is expected on Sunday 1 against Corinthians in the Supercopa do Brasil, pending inclusion in the CBF's Boletim Informativo Diário, BID. If cleared, he will be an option for Filipe Luís. The match is at Estádio Mané Garrincha in Brasília, with kick-off at 16:00 Brasília time.

Source: Coluna Do Fla