The future of playmaker Lucas Lima at Santos creates uncertainty in the planning of the club for the following season.
As mentioned in UOL Esporte, the board of Santos intends to keep the player until the end of his contract [December 31, 2017] but coach Dorival Júnior doesn"t seem to believe in this and is looking worked for a replacement. Lucas Lima is aware of the club"s intentions, and is concerned that the board would impede a transfer to European football in the middle of this year. The player also knows that hardly any club would be willing to trigger his €60 million release clause. The coach tries to find a successor of Lucas Lima in two ways: in the squad itself, or in clubs playing in the lower divisions of the Campeonato Paulista. The coach even tries to repeat a strategy that indirectly benefited the club. That"s because Dorival was responsible for discovering midfielder Lucas Lima at Inter de Limeira in 2013. Dorival has recently placed his trust on Rafael Longuine, but still the coaching staff, internally, doesn"t think the player is ready to take responsibility.
The future of playmaker Lucas Lima at Santos creates uncertainty in the planning of the club for the following season.
As mentioned in UOL Esporte, the board of Santos intends to keep the player until the end of his contract [December 31, 2017] but coach Dorival Júnior doesn"t seem to believe in this and is looking worked for a replacement. Lucas Lima is aware of the club"s intentions, and is concerned that the board would impede a transfer to European football in the middle of this year. The player also knows that hardly any club would be willing to trigger his €60 million release clause. The coach tries to find a successor of Lucas Lima in two ways: in the squad itself, or in clubs playing in the lower divisions of the Campeonato Paulista. The coach even tries to repeat a strategy that indirectly benefited the club. That"s because Dorival was responsible for discovering midfielder Lucas Lima at Inter de Limeira in 2013. Dorival has recently placed his trust on Rafael Longuine, but still the coaching staff, internally, doesn"t think the player is ready to take responsibility.
