2024-10-12 03:01:00
The president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, was in favor this Friday of the idea of calling to the National Team only footballers who play in his country’s league given that “there is no star” abroad.
“Those who are away are not better than those who are here,” he said during a radio interview, a day after the Canarinha agonizingly beat Chile 2-1 in the Qualifiers with goals from Luiz Henrique and Igor Jesus, two players from the Botafogo, Rio de Janeiro.
The president said that he recently met with the president of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) and that he raised the possibility of calling only those who play in the country, which would exclude footballers such as Vinícius, Rodrigo, Militão and Endrick, from the Real Madrid, or Raphinha, from Barça.
According to Lula, at this moment there are “no Garrincha or Romário” on foreign teams; just “a bunch of young people who aren’t cracks yet.”
“In Brazil there are good players of the same quality, so give opportunities to those who are here,” he proposed.
The president, who is a Corinthians fan, likes to comment on current sports news during interviews and lately he has been critical of the situation of both his team, which is in the relegation zone, and the National Team, which is fourth in the Qualifiers, just three points from the playoff position.