The MLS champion has news: João Paulo leaves Botafogo and arrives at Seattle Sounders
After three years in Rio de Janeiro, the midfield leaves Brazil and makes the best choice for the moment of his career
João Paulo was announced by the Seattle Sounders on this Friday, 31. After three years as a technical reference of Botafogo, the 28-year-old Brazilian was hired on loan by the current Major League Soccer champion.
The terms of the deal were established since the 15th, but the announcement was made only when the player reached the largest city in state of Washington. João Paulo arrives at the MLS champion with the mission of reinforcing a squad that is already quite strong and has not suffered many losses in the transfer window.
This article aims to summarize João Paulo’s time at Botafogo and project his future for the Seattle Sounders team, so come on!
It’s the Sounders’ time!
João Paulo arrives in Seattle at the best time he could. The traditional North American team was champion of the last season of Major League Soccer, even with the feelings of Atlanta United and Los Angeles FC on the rise.
It arrives to be the crucial and decisive reinforcement for a possible continuation of the Sounders’ reign in MLS. With few losses in the previous season’s squad, the 2019 champions remain favorites to take the title back to Washington state.
João Paulo occupied a DP spot in the Sounders, alongside peruvian Raul Ruidíaz and uruguaian Nicolás Lodeiro, another player who played for Botafogo. After Osvaldo Alonso left for Minnesota, the Sounders suffered from the irregularity of their players in the position of central midfielder and observed names that fulfilled their expectations.
In October, the scouts of the North American club came to Brazil to observe some names for a position that was considered the weak point of the team: the central midfielder.
The names observed were Gregore (Bahia) and João Paulo (Botafogo). After the end of the season, the board decided who would gain priority in this dispute. Gregore gained more attention from Seattle, especially because of his young age, which could make things easier in the event of a future sale.
Also speculated by Besiktas from Turkey, João Paulo remained at Botafogo after the choice of Sounders directors. With the proposal sent, Seattle hoped to define Gregore’s situation as soon as possible, but did not expect a refusal from Bahia, nor even the player’s refusal to go to MLS.
That was when João Paulo returned to the Sounders’ table and guaranteed his trip to the champions of Major League Soccer. João’s good numbers for the Botafogo team combined the fame of the midfield with the Rio fans and created expectation among Seattle fans.
Hired to be the main player in the Sounders’ midfield, João Paulo’s transfer was positive for everyone involved. João Paulo is a very regular player and has very few injuries. The midfielder played 36 of the 38 games of the last Brazilian Championship, being a great option for an almost disastrous season for Botafogo, which ended very close to being relegated.
Work done in Rio
Botafogo has not won a great title since 1995, when they were Brazilian champions for the last time. Since then, few players have been marked by the club and its fans. Even with few achievements, João Paulo was one of those.
He arrived at the club in 2017 with some expectations from the board, after a good time with the Santa Cruz team, the previous year. Gradually, João conquered his space in the midfield of black and white and became even more consecrated in what seemed to be a magical year for the fans of Botafogo.
The club disputed the Libertadores da América and managed to advance in the stage, with a hint of emotion in all matches. João was the conductor of the entire offensive sector.
During that year, João injured his eyebrow region several times, having to put a protective cap. It was enough for the Botafogo fan to revere him beyond soccer. Even injured, João Paulo demonstrated a toughness while on the field and produced even more for the team.
A superstitious crowd like that of Botafogo implored João to continue playing with the cap, even with the injuries healed. Even with the elimination in the continental competition and a weak campaign in the return of the Brasileirão, João Paulo was one of the few who continued with prestige with the fans, as well as the goalkeeper Gatito Fernández.
The following year, João was state champion, but followed the game from the stands in the iconic Maracana stadium. The reason? A serious injury caused by the recklessness of a Vasco da Gama player, still in the beginning of the competition, left João Paulo out of the pitch for 8 months.
He made a symbolic comeback in the last two matches of the year and ended the season with just 15 games. In 2019, João Paulo was not as regular as he would like in the first half, but no one in the squad managed to stand out. During the second part of the national championship, João Paulo stood out and helped the club to stay in the first division of Brazil.
The midfielder had the possibility to remain at the club, which has good financial expectations for the year 2020, but preferred to wait for the Seattle Sounders proposal, which only came official in mid-January.
João Paulo ends his cycle in Rio de Janeiro, with morale with the Botafogo fans, something different from the other players who left the squad in the last five years. He cared for his professional future and will be missed by the public at the Nilton Santos Stadium.
