Frederic Fausser, owner of Sambafoot, recently spoke to Juninho. The former star from Middlesbrough who also played in Spain, Scotland and Australia and who won the 2002 World Cup with Brazil spoke about his new projects as president of Ituano, the club that saw the start of his professional player.
How did you become president of the club Ituano?
When I came back from Australia I spent six months without playing. I even thought about putting an end to my career. But after 20 years in football I wanted to carry on. I didn’t want to be a coach or a director in another club. I wanted to manage a club so that I could do the things I wanted the way I wanted to, the way I have learnt in the past 20 years. That’s when the opportunity at Ituano came up. The club president who was there when I played at Ituano was still in charge and he offered me the job. After some analysis, I accepted and rented the club for 10 years so I could stay in the football world.
But despite being president you still play for the club, isn’t that interesting?
Yes it is interesting. I started in June 2009 and in January 2010 I did the State Championship of Sao Paulo. It was good because I closed the loop: it was my last championship and it was with the club that saw me start as a professional player. I never thought it would be possible.
And now as president, what are the goals?
First we need infrastructures. We need some pitches to train, and to accommodate us. Basically when I came back I found the club in the same state that I had left it 15 years before. We already started the work. We renovated the stadium which can now host 19,000 people, all with proper seats. It is in my opinion the best stadium in the inlands of Sao Paulo. There were only three players when I got here, now we have around 50 of them. We can give accommodation to 30 players, between professional and youth players. We deliver food and sporting material. The infrastructure is getting better which means we can than get the best out of our athletes.
Speaking of infrastructure you played in Spain, England, and Scotland, is there something from Europe that you would like to bring to Brazil?
It is another level. You can’t compare the infrastructures in England with the ones in Brazil. For example in Middlesbrough they have an infrastructure similar to the best clubs in Brazil but in terms of administration it is very different, when it comes to marketing and even their accommodations are way ahead of us. In Ituano we are trying to take advantage of what I learn from the clubs I went to.
Do you still have contacts in Middlesbrough?
I do. Sometimes we chat.
Do you have something to say to the Middlesbrough fans and the English public?
Well, we were trying to organise a friendly game between Ituano and Middlesbrough, where I would play for both teams. But with their busy calendar it is a bit difficult, so I don’t know if it is going to be possible. But one thing I would really like to do is play one last game in the Riverside. It would also be interesting to build some sort of partnership between my team and England. Indeed, we have a lot of players here, unlike England.
Remember, if you have a question for Juninho, leave it in the comment section below!
Prepare for an exciting soccer game with bladder constructed balls
