Before signing Pato, AC Milan made an offer for Wendell Lira, nominated for 2015 FIFA Puskás Award

  Brazilian attacker Wendell Lira could have had a completely different destination in his life, more precisely, in Milan. He was unemployed until recently but is now known for the great goal he scored for Goianésia which earned him a nomination for the FIFA Puskas Award 2015. Wendell Lira, who signed for Vila Nova few […]
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sambafoot_admin
2015-11-28 15:16:00

 

Brazilian attacker Wendell Lira could have had a completely different destination in his life, more precisely, in Milan.
He was unemployed until recently but is now known for the great goal he scored for Goianésia which earned him a nomination for the FIFA Puskas Award 2015. Wendell Lira, who signed for Vila Nova few days ago after three months without a club, emerged as one of the most promising players of the youth categories of Goiás and even played for the Brazilian U20 national team. Aged 17, it was the same team that had the likes of Willian [Chelsea] and Alexandre Pato and they won the Copa Sendai in Japan in 2006.
Wendell scored one of the goals in the campaign, and returning to Goiás, he was very good in the U20 Campeonato Brasileiro. He was elected as the revelation and finished as top scorer with seven goals. He was then wanted by some Brazilian clubs, and AC Milan made a R$ 6 million offer for him, who at the time had the Spanish agent Gerardo Santiago, same guy who took Denílson from São Paulo to Arsenal in 2006. He told ESPN Brasil: “I had done very well and there was interest. Milan even made an official proposal, but Goiás didn"t want to sell me at that time, because I had just signed a professional contract for five years. They hoped to profit more. I was very sad at that time because it was a dream to play there, but as I"m very quiet, I always believed that one day things would work out."
Without reaching an agreement, Milan signed Alexandre Pato, a young revelation from Internacional, months later.

Brazilian attacker Wendell Lira could have had a completely different destination in his life, more precisely, in Milan.

He was unemployed until recently but is now known for the great goal he scored for Goianésia which earned him a nomination for the FIFA Puskas Award 2015. Wendell Lira, who signed for Vila Nova few days ago after three months without a club, emerged as one of the most promising players of the youth categories of Goiás and even played for the Brazilian U20 national team. Aged 17, it was the same team that had the likes of Willian [Chelsea] and Alexandre Pato and they won the Copa Sendai in Japan in 2006.

Wendell scored one of the goals in the campaign, and returning to Goiás, he was very good in the U20 Campeonato Brasileiro. He was elected as the revelation and finished as top scorer with seven goals. He was then wanted by some Brazilian clubs, and AC Milan made a R$ 6 million offer for him, who at the time had the Spanish agent Gerardo Santiago, same guy who took Denílson from São Paulo to Arsenal in 2006. He told ESPN Brasil: “I had done very well and there was interest. Milan even made an official proposal, but Goiás didn"t want to sell me at that time, because I had just signed a professional contract for five years. They hoped to profit more. I was very sad at that time because it was a dream to play there, but as I"m very quiet, I always believed that one day things would work out."

Without reaching an agreement, Milan signed Alexandre Pato, a young revelation from Internacional, months later.