Botafogo CEO explains the departure of Bruno Lage and Lucio Flavio and reinforces the goal of becoming a champion: the arrival of Thiago Nunes gave a shot in the arm

Hey Botafogo For the first time this Thursday (11/23), the fifth coach in… Brazilian Championship, Thiago Nunes. He took over after two coaches were fired Bruno Lage And then Lucio Flavio. In an interview with Flashscore Brasil, Thiru ArrudaThe club’s CEO spoke of title confidence – Glorioso will regain top spot if they beat Fortaleza at Arena Castelao.

We have a lot of ambition in our minds, and we seek to seize opportunities even when we do not expect them to happen. Today our goal is to be a champion. Of course we would be very disappointed if this didn’t happen. We are very optimistic, we believe it is in our hands, and our team is very good. The arrival of Thiago Nunes gave us a shot in the arm, as if we had now crossed the ruler and started again. It’s a short shot, a new five-round tournament, and it just depends on us. “Optimism has always prevailed in our club and we will strive to get this title at all costs,” the manager said.

Thero Arruda also spoke about the coaches who were fired. Regarding Bruno Lage, the coach said that the Portuguese might stay if Botafogo was not competing for the title.

-The decision has to be seen at the moment, and it was unanimous, and I did not see anyone saying that they did not like it. Lage was a popular guy and we took him out of the Premier League. He has amazing experience. It was a decision we made, especially John, that made everyone happy. A project that did not work out does not always mean that the coach is bad. He probably didn’t have enough time to do the project, and we didn’t have enough time to wait either. If he needed another six months or a year, as Luis Castro did, he also fluctuated in it… At that moment we went in search of the title, we made the decision based on the achievement. If we were in another position, maybe in mid-table, maybe Bruno would have stayed, because he had to give himself time. “But seeing the team losing playing conditions and competitiveness in many cases, we had to make a decision at that moment,” he explained.

Regarding Lucio Flavio, Thero said Botafogo does not regret appointing the former permanent assistant.

-We often analyze things after they happen. If we had won the last matches, and had it not been for the refereeing errors that were decisive in some matches as well, no one would have asked about Lucio Flavio. We have to analyze decisions at the time they are made. When we appointed Lucio, the vast majority of fans and the press praised him, because it made sense, Lucio was the person most capable of taking Botafogo out of the first phase of the Brazilian championship, because he had it together. The decision was very well made, and we do not regret it. As things evolve, we as a company have to have the ability to make new decisions based on the moment. We always thought about signing Thiago Nunes next year, but since we will be able to sign him soon, it makes sense at that moment to make this decision.