One of the most controversial moments of Jordi Cruyff at Maccabi Tel Aviv was the addition of Marcelo and Ramon. The first was added in the amount of 1.6 million euros, while the second came on loan, in a deal that seemed like the complete opposite of what we saw from Jordi Maccabi Tel Aviv until Then. The two did not really integrate in Israel and received almost no minutes, but 4 years later they managed to fulfill their promise? We went out to check out where the Brazilian duo had gone.
Scolari’s favorite: Ramon started his career at Cruzeiro
Before landing at Maccabi Tel Aviv, Ramon Roma was marked as a great potential in Brazil, one that made even the great Barcelona follow him. Despite this, in Israel he did not really show his ability, neither for better nor for worse, this is how it is when you play only 97 minutes in total.
Much has changed since then in Ramon’s career, which is finally beginning to fulfill the promise everyone expected it to be. The brake returned to the Brazilian Vitoria, where he broke out and in the last three years revealed a particularly high ability, which arranged for him just before the outbreak of the corona, beyond the Brazilian luxury club, Cruzeiro. The Blues are currently playing in Serie B in Brazil, but are hoping to return to the First Division, so have invested large budgets to do so.
“Cruzeiro has been chasing Ramon for a year but each time failed to reach an agreement with Vitoria,” it was written in his homeland, “this is a brake that was supposed to be the future of the Brazilian league. He could become very dominant in a big team in Brazil.
In the Brazilian luxury team he plays under legendary coach Felipe Scolari, who took it as a personal project. “I’m very pleased with Ramon’s game intelligence,” he said. Scolari He said, “Usually young players find it difficult to integrate, but he has a lot of confidence and he proves himself in every training session. He has a lot of potential.”
“Ramon has a natural talent, it’s something I noticed from the first moment I saw him,” the former Brazil national team coach continued, “he is the future of Cruzeiro.”
In Brazil, Ramon’s management is very flattering from the back of Cruzeiro, with 89% of his dedication and in fact the one who starts most of the Blues’ attacks: “Scolari plays with him both as a stopper and a contact, he is his” player “on the grass. “Ramon is doing well.”
“Ramon supports the defense and manages the game,” they described in Brazil, “he just sees the game better than other players and that makes it very meaningful for the team.”
At the same time, at the age of 25 when he plays in the second division in Brazil, in a team as big as it may be, Ramon is far from being the exit that Jordi Cruyff dreamed of being. He is improving, Scolari appreciates him, but still, he is a player in the second division in Brazil, and not the “brake that promises to be sold to the greatness of Europe”, as they thought in Kiryat Shalom.
Marcello – the only one that 2020 lit up his face
The second part of the Brazilian duo that Jordi Cruyff landed was Marcelo Mashado dos Santos. The midfielder, who arrived at the same deal in dispute over a transfer fee of 1.6 million euros, was a partner in a total of 37 league minutes in Maccabi Tel Aviv before leaving for Bnei Yehuda, where he played only 149 minutes in 2 games.
Since then, the midfielder, who is now 26 years old, has managed to play for the luxury club Botofago, but his career has pretty much faded after he left it. For the past two years he has been playing for Guarani from Sao Paulo, who play in the second division in Brazil.
The first year at Guarani Marcelo was considered a disappointment. He regularly teased social media from fans and was marked as Guarani’s “problem”. “Marcello does not like football,” it was written at the time, “he has no desire to get better, and that is reflected in his ability.” The allegations were about losing a ball and a lack of motivation, but now the situation has changed.
Since the appointment of coach Felipe Consisseau to Guarani, he has started getting credit with 25 appearances in 2020. “Until Conscio arrived, Marcelo was an off and on insignificant player,” Brazil wrote. “He moved between bench and line-up, and was mostly lacking in energy. When a player who does not provide numbers like him, he is also unmotivated, so ability accordingly.”
“The new coach made me intense, I was not sharp, I just played backwards, and he taught me to dare, to go forward, that I have something to offer,” Marcelo said, “I got a chance after a long period of not believing in my career and realized I had something psychologically blocked. They believe in me and that makes me open up and show the ability that was expected of me. “
“Throughout my career I have been looking for a coach who will be a guide,” the former Maccabi Tel Aviv player said, “Now I have found, I feel like I am somewhere else in my game.”
“You could say he was not released at the beginning of the year just for financial reasons,” Brazilian journalist Lucas Rusapa, who accompanies Guarani, tells of ex-Maccabi Tel Aviv who was also recently positive for Corona, “he stayed on the roster, got a chance due to player injuries hands. He was recently offered a new contract and will continue to be a leading player here. Marcelo seems to be a good player for the second division in Brazil. Not brilliant or someone who can play in big clubs in Brazil, but does the job in the center of the field. “
Despite the good times, the development of his career and the place he is at the age of 26, again raises questions about what was behind the deal, in which Jordi Cruyff paid 1.6 million euros for him. The answers? In the Dutch.
