Against Sport last Saturday, Alejandro Guerra suffered a trauma to his left foot and left the pitch halfway into the second half. Yesterday evening the club confirmed the Venezuelan will need a ligament surgery, scheduled already for today. Expected recovery time, three months.
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Bad news obviously for Guerra, and in particular for Palmeiras. Our offensive midfield has trouble enough as is. Gustavo Scarpa remains banned from training and play, awaiting the judge’s decision regarding his contractual detachment from Fluminense. Lucas Lima has not delivered much as of late, more often than not being substituted in the second half of the games. Moisés and Jean – not really offensive midfielders to start with – are returning from injury. Hyoran is the only highlight so far, showing evolution and attitude, clearly aspiring for a spot in Machado’s starting eleven of choice. Our coach can also pull Dudu back from the forward position, giving him a more centralised, play-making role. Yes, there are options, but the current situation is far from ideal.
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Forward Artur is participating fully in training and test games after his ankle surgery in February and should shortly be at coach Machado’s disposal. The Brazilian U20 player is someone to keep an eye on.
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Last week, Palmeiras announced the club had not reached an agreement with fourth keeper Daniel Fuzato regarding a contract renewal. Fuzato is 20 years old and has been with the club since his early teens. With Prass and Jailson expected to retire within a year or two or three, Fuzato’s moment was bound to come. There are several plausible reasons for the break, the most likely being financial: possibly, Palmeiras considered Fuzato’s asking price too high. Another possibility could be Fuzato’s desire to move his carer faster, thinking he would have more opportunities in another club (a view often fuel by agents, looking at commission). A third reason could, of course, be technical: the youngster’s development might have stalled. In any case, Fuzato’s current contract expires at the end of the year and certainly he is already looking at options.
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Director of football Alexandre Mattos last week confirmed Palmeiras have signed striker Arthur Cabral from Ceará. At the age of 20, Cabral has 27 appearances and 17 goals in 2018. His excellent numbers aroused the interest of clubs like Grêmio, Flamengo, Atlético Mineiro and Santos. Howevere, the athlete will remain in the northeast and continue playing for Ceará until the end of the year, joining Palmeiras only in 2019.
“Arthur is still maturing and we’re leaving him to continue this process in Ceará”, Mattos explained. “He is a player that has been carefully analysed by our technical commission, thinking ahead. He will ripen.”
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During the World Cup, Palmeiras will embark on a small Central America tour, with three games: two in Panama and one in Costa Rica. In Panamá City, Palmeiras will play Árabe Unido (30 June) and Independiente Medellín (4 July) for the “Por la Paz de Colón” tournament. In Costa Rica, Palmeiras play Liga Alajuelense on 8 July (city/venue tbc). Travelling cost are, apparently, catered for by the organisers.
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