Since Alexandre Mattos’ arrival, Palmeiras have been known for a voracious appetite during transfer windows. In his first year as Palmeiras’ football director, more than twenty players were signed to perform an extreme makeover of the squad. The most famous was Dudu’s announcement, on a Sunday morning, when all the rumours indicated the player going to Corinthians.
The necessity of a deep transformation after difficult years pushed Mattos to his limits to bring a great amount of good players to Palmeiras in 2015 and 2016. The following two years also saw a considerable number of transfers, but were marked by the arrival of big players disputed with other international teams: Felipe Melo, Borja, Lucas Lima and Gustavo Scarpa.
In 2019, Palmeiras seem to have entered a new stage. The squad is consolidated and the few transfers normally involve promising players destined for the youth academy, with only a medium-term prospect of entering the A squad. In the current window, there have been just one external addition to the A-squad (Ramires) and one player promoted from the youth academy (Iván Angulo). Nevertheless, despite the reduced number of transfers, Palmeiras no doubt feature the best squad in Brazil.
Palmeiras’ current squad is composed mainly of players that have more than one year in the club. The continuity of key players over the years makes the mesh more likely to occur – simply put, because they know each other well enough. On the other hand, the seven players that arrived in 2019 are important to bring fresh blood to the squad and develop new talents for the future, as some departures inevitably will happen.
The blend of mature players that know the club and new players that create new opportunities is what makes Palmeiras so strong in every competition.
Scoppia che la vittoria è nostra!
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by Augusto Anteghini Oazi
ANYTHING PALMEIRAS 