During last season, Sebastian Coates had mixed feelings whenever he talked about his future. On the one hand, even because it coincided with a time in which he entered the top 10 players with the most official appearances for Sport, as well as being the foreigner who wore the green and white shirt of the most times, he was talking about it. to stay in Alvalade naturally, until another year of the contract is activated automatically when playing 30 games with 45 minutes or more. On the other hand, he did not completely rule out the possibility of returning to Uruguay at the final stage of his career after spending more than ten years in Europe. I just had to know when the scales would be unbalanced for the South American side. In principle, it would be in 2025. In fact, it will be right now, this summer of 2024.
The information began to spread in a surprising way on Friday night in Uruguayan circles and it did not take long to reach Portugal, where everything was discussed with those responsible for Sporting and Nacional, the club where the central defender trained 33 years old. . First of all, Sebastián Eguren, director of the Uruguay team, presented a concrete proposal to the player in Lisbon, who accepted the contact to return to the country immediately. Then, continue negotiations with the lions so that it will be possible to terminate the contract by June 2025, which will also be achieved. The move is expected to be made official in the coming hours.
Sebastián Coates is the new reinforcement of Nacional.
*️⃣The defender agreed to leave Sporting (he had one more year left on his contract) and will sign until December 2025. #Deal done pic.twitter.com/H9wg3KfEPw— César Luis Merlo (@CLMerlo) July 5, 2024
“I have another year on my contract at Sporting. The contract is now automatically renewed. So now I want to enjoy my holidays and then, when the time is right, I will talk to Nacional, if you want. But I have one more year on my contract with Sporting and not with Nacional. I’m always in touch with Nacional, I have a friend, Mauricio [Pereyra], who plays there and I’m always in touch with him. I have another year on my contract with Sporting and I respect that bond. The idea now is to enjoy the holidays and then think about what’s to come”, said the international at the end of May, when he arrived in Uruguay on holiday.
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“We have to be very careful about this. It is not good to create too many expectations, That’s why I say I have one more year on my contract and then we’ll see what happens. I don’t like to create expectations for anyone. Balance of time? Fortunately we were champions, that’s everyone’s goal. I am happy to have achieved another goal and to have played for a long time. I didn’t expect to win by such a margin, the Championship is usually in the balance. We were consistent, throughout the year we didn’t drop points at home, so it was a great season. We had a final [da Taça de Portugal] that we didn’t manage to win but, overall, the balance was positive because we achieved the main objective”, he said at the same time, talking about the 2023/24 season with the Lions.
It should be remembered that during the last season, Seba Coates, who came to Alvalade in January 2016 while still on loan from Sunderland, the alien came to the most official meetings of the Leo group, has also entered the top 10 players with the most appearances in the club’s history with a total of eight titles: two Championships, one Portuguese Cup, four League Cups and one Super Cup. The moment he reached 344 games (now he had played 369) was marked in a special way by the lions, who held a party to celebrate the milestone with the presence of the squad and the former captain of the team as well.
From “quiet boy” to the undisputed leader: Coates, El Capitán who always chose Sporting until he managed to make history
“Coming to a club like Sport and having so many games It’s something I never dreamed of but you dream about these things since you were little. When it’s over, it’s time to enjoy it because it’s always beautiful to receive these tributes, yesterday at the Stadium and today. I thank everyone. Upcoming brands? I’m going from 50 to 50, when I got to 300 I said I wanted to get to 350 and I’m going to try to get it. Then we will think further ahead”, said that event, in December 2023, El Capitán from the green and white team.
Sports announcing the signing of Sebastián Coates on loan from Sunderland
“In a month, it will be eight years since Seba came to this club and, with great conviction, I was one of the first people to welcome him. I never imagined he’d be playing so many games but he’s in great form here and that’s mostly down to his talent, speed or height, but with your professionalism from day one. There are 344 games, a significant number, but for the members the trophies he won are also important. I have no doubt that these numbers will not stop there, Seba will continue to play more games and give more trophies”, highlighted Frederico Varandas, president of Sport, also at that ceremony.