AC Milan’s Ronaldinho signs a four-year deal with Brazilian club Flamengo
Brazilian star Ronaldinho has signed a deal with Brazilian club Flamengo till 2014 – the year Brazil’s set to host the FIFA World Cup. The player turned down a move back to his former Brazilian club Gremio. He played at the club
during the early days of his career before moving to Paris St Germain in 2001. The play-maker was also reportedly offered a £20m three-year contract by Premier League club Blackburn Rovers.
Flamengo president Patricia Amorim stated on the club website, "We are pleased to announce the hiring of Ronaldinho for the next four years. I thank the board for the discretion and wisdom throughout the negotiations. This project
started from the first day I got the presidency. I thank the legal department to head coach Wanderley Luxemburgo and especially the fans of Flamengo.”
Ronaldinho was speculated to head to Gremio when it was clear at the beginning of this month that his reign at former club AC Milan was set to end. The Brazilian lost his place in Milan’s starting 11 after Zlatan Ibrahimovic and
Robinho were signed by the club in the summer. The arrival of Antonio Cassano from Sampdoria confirmed Ronaldinho’s departure from Milan.
The two-time FIFA World Player of the Year was at the peak of his career during his days at Barcelona. He helped Barca regain its status as a top club in the world and compete with Spanish giants Real Madrid. During his time in
Spain, Ronaldinho won both the La Liga title and the Champions League.
In recent years, Ronaldinho has not been able to keep up with the high standards he set during the early days of his career. He was able to produce a few decent performances at Milan but was never able to play as freely as he once
did. He was also left out of the Brazilian squad for the 2010 World Cup. His exclusion was criticized by some football experts as he was displaying good form before the World Cup.
Ronaldinho is aiming to re-book his place in the Brazil team and it is reported as the reason for his return to his homeland. "This is the start of an important stage in which everyone is looking at the World Cup and I'd like to
be here to continue my career in Brazil," he said.