remember Athletico’s “controversial” negotiations

The announcement of the arrival of the technician Cuca to the Athletico after the annulment of the rape conviction in Switzerland caused a lot of divergence in fans and public opinion.

However, Furacão, under the leadership of Mario Celso Petraglia, is historically known for shielding players and the coaching staff from issues external to CT do Caju.

If this was the first time that a coach caused so much discussion, there are some negotiations with controversial figures that Furacão had in the past.

Robinho

Athletico probed the striker in 2020, three years after the first instance conviction of Robinho for gang rape in Italy.

That season, Rubro-Negro’s coach was Dorival Júnior, currently on the Brazilian team. Dorival was Robinho’s commander in 2010, at Santos. Furacão took advantage of the old relationship between the two to try to sign him.

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Robinho had left Istanbul Basaksehir, in Türkiye, and was without a club. After refusing Athletico, he agreed with Santos. Despite this, the fourth spell at Peixe was completed without any games. The contract ended up being terminated due to pressure from sponsors and fans.

In January 2022, the highest court in Italy sentenced the former Brazilian national team striker to nine years in prison and pay compensation of 60 thousand euros to the victim. However, Robinho was not arrested because he was living in Brazil, which does not extradite native Brazilians. A trial by the Superior Court of Justice (STJ), scheduled for the 20th, will analyze whether the Italian conviction is valid in Brazil so that Robinho can be arrested.

Daniel Alves

He is the only athlete on the list who, when negotiating with Athletico, did not have any legal controversy.

Imprisoned in Spain since January 2023, the former right-back was sentenced to 4 and a half years in prison and a fine of 150,000 euros for the victim for a rape, called “sexual assault” in the European country, in a nightclub of Barcelona, ​​on December 30, 2022.

However, in July 2022, months before committing the crime in Spain, Daniel Alves assured the The Guardianfrom England, who would play for Athletico if he returned to Brazil.

This is due to the relationship built with Petraglia. The director received Daniel Alves at CT do Caju in November 2021. The visit took place at the club’s request. Daniel was without a team at the time after leaving São Paulo two months earlier. In addition to the visit to the club’s facilities, partnerships between the parties were discussed, as Daniel Alves had a project for children.

Petraglia made an offer to the athlete, but the full-back chose to return to Barcelona. Upon the return of midfielder Fernandinho, in June 2022, the red-and-black president said he still hoped for the player’s signing. However, Daniel Alves signed with Pumas, from Mexico, and was subsequently called up by Tite for the World Cup in Qatar.

Marcinho

The right-back arrived at Athletico in 2021 after causing a traffic accident in Rio de Janeiro that resulted in the death of a couple. Despite resistance from a large part of the red and black fans, the club shielded Marcinho.

According to the police, Marcinho had been drinking before driving, was above the speed limit and fled without providing assistance. The Public Ministry of Rio (MP-RJ) charged the athlete with manslaughter (when there is no intention to kill) and, in April 2023, more than a year after leaving Furacão, he was sentenced to three years and six months of prison.

The athlete played 57 games with the red and black shirt and participated in winning the Copa Sudamericana title.

However, at the beginning of 2022, Marcinho was removed by Petraglia. The contract, which would run until April 2023, was terminated after the player committed a penalty in stoppage time of the draw against Palmeiras, in the first game of the Recopa Sul-Americana. On the way back, Furacão were beaten 2-0 and lost the cup.

Moustache

In March 2023, the attacker William Bigode left Fluminense to join Athletico on loan. At the time, he was away from the main group of the Rio team to resolve private problems.

The problems came from a complaint from midfielder Gustavo Scarpa, who claimed to be the victim of a million-dollar scam by the company Xland Holding, a cryptocurrency operator. The intermediation was done by a company from Bigode, called WLJC.

Scarpa and Bigode were teammates for years at Palmeiras. The midfielder claims to have lost R$6.3 million, while right-back Mayke invested R$4.1 million in the company. The duo was deceived that they would have a financial return of 3.5% to 5% per month.

In court, Willian states that he recommended the company to the duo, but denied financial benefit and that he was also a victim after losing R$17.5 million. The case is still ongoing, with Bigode as the defendant.

The player is playing for Santos and will compete in Series B after Furacão did not renew the agreement at the end of last season. Bigode ended his second spell at Athletico with 26 games (six starts) and four goals scored.

This Wednesday (6), the court ordered Santos to pawn 30% of Bigode’s salary to reimburse Mayke in the cryptocurrency scam. According to the decision, the Palmeiras player suffered a loss of R$7,834,232.61 in the case.