Good thing it wasn’t all about the money, right? One week after telling Globo Esporte that, if he had his way, he would have already returned to Grêmio, Ronaldinho has signed with the club that claimed to have made the most lucrative offer. Granted, Flamengo wasn’t the only club claiming to be offering the most real for the former World Player of the Year, but they were most believable. In that vein it’s no surprise the Gaúcho is set to move from Milan to the Maracanã, which doesn’t make today’s news any less disappointing.
Ronaldinho Set To Return To Brazil, Leaves Milan For Flamengo
The idea of Ronaldinho's exit from Europe became romantic when he was again set to become Imortal, but moving to Flamengo is just another move. While it's great to see somebody as talented as Ronaldinho moving back to Brazil, selecting Flamengo makes him little different than any other player returning home. He is Ronaldinho, true, so this is more like Ronaldo or Roberto Carlos's return. Which is to say, we've seen this before and recently.
Ronaldinho returning home to Grêmio would have been different. Ronaldo didn’t return to Cruziero, and Roberto Carlos didn’t go back to Internazionale, let alone Uniaoõ São João. Ronaldinho not only could have gone back to Grêmio, but the move was plausible. Ronaldinho had already said that he was willing to reduce his wages. Grêmio is Copa Libertadores qualified. It’s not just his first club. It’s his home town club.
But instead of Porto Alegre, Ronaldinho is set to take his talents to Rio de Janiero, signing with Flamengo through 2014.. Perhaps Grêmio’s the next stop - the last stop - but for those of us who already had Ronaldinho back in the Tricolor, the latest affirmation of money over romance stings, if only slightly.
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