Could São Paulo lose Marcos Antonio to Flamengo? Situation explained | OneFootball

Among all the speculations involving São Paulo's names, the ones the fans fear the most are those concerning midfielder Marcos Antonio, considered a major highlight of the team in this turbulent year of 2025.

And the information emerging via Paparazzo Rubro-Negro, a channel specialized in the Rio de Janeiro club, is that Flamengo has the São Paulo midfielder on their radar for the upcoming 2026 season.

This is because the Spanish midfielder Saul might need to undergo surgery, and the Uruguayan Nicolas De La Cruz continues to have chronic issues with both knees. Thus, the Rio de Janeiro management is starting to evaluate names in the market.

And Marcos Antonio, a player who was already contested by São Paulo when he came to Morumbi, is once again on the radar of the red-blacks. But is it that easy to take him away from Tricolor?

The contract with São Paulo

Marcos is on loan, for the second time, from Lazio, now with an agreement until June 2026. The contract, however, includes a mandatory purchase of the midfielder by São Paulo, which will pay 4 million euros (R$ 26 million at the current rate), divided over three years to the Italians. This was confirmed by the football executive Rui Costa, in words to journalist Jorge Nicola.

The purchase is considered mandatory by the club, as the stipulated goals of games to be played are easy to achieve.

Therefore, if Flamengo wants to count on the number 20 from Tricolor, they will have to shell out a good amount to São Paulo, in addition to convincing the club to sell their major highlight of 2025.

However, Tricolor's intention is not to part with one of its team's pillars. Unless a great and irresistible offer arises, which is unlikely to be the case if Flamengo indeed pursues Marcos Antonio.

Moreover, the player has never hidden his love for his childhood club, one of the main reasons why Marcos came to São Paulo while there was heavy competition from Flamengo for his signing previously.

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