Saul: If I want to follow Felipe as a coach, the connection with the fans is more important than the championship

Saul joined the South American giant Flamengo this summer. He recently accepted an interview with "Lance!" magazine, Saul talked about adapting to the new environment, praised Flamengo fans, and revealed his wishes.

On traveling to another continent to play football

"To be honest, it was a huge change in my life. Ultimately, my son was born in Rio de Janeiro, which is something I never imagined. And to be honest, changes are always difficult at the beginning. It's true. , every day you feel more and more at home, and most importantly, I am very grateful to all the fans, the club and especially my teammates and coaches who make me feel at home and we are adapting to everything little by little," said Saul.

About the local people

"My favorite thing is the people here. From the first day I arrived here, while I was still staying in the hotel, people have been very friendly to me and my family even if they don't know me. They are approachable and always try to help. And, as I mentioned before, my brothers have been living here since the beginning, They come down at five o'clock every morning and play football on the beach with the people who invite them. It's not easy to be invited to play football, to train, to be with them when you don't know anyone. So what I like most is that the people are very approachable, very welcoming, and I like the humble way they treat people."

Rio de Janeiro becomes a second home

"In the world of football, everything is possible. You never know what will happen. Currently, according to the contract, we have three years left, but maybe it will be longer. However, for me, the most important thing now is my family. My family is happy and getting happier because of a Things are slowly settling down and everyone is feeling more and more like home. My kids are doing really well in school and they're even learning two other languages - not only Portuguese, but also English, which they started learning in school. So, yes, Rio de Janeiro has the potential to become our second home," he said.

Saul is considering following in the footsteps of Felipe Luis and becoming a coach.

"Yes, logically, of course I want to be a coach. But it's one thing to want to be a coach, and it's another thing to actually do it. Because even if I have a lot of ideas in my head that I think I'm going to be the best coach in the world, you need to put those ideas into context Pass it on to the players. You need to believe in yourself so that the players can believe in themselves. It's not easy to do what Felipe did, for example, because to keep players in the team that I played with is the hardest thing," he mused. "

Saul praised the power of Flamengo fans at the Maracana Stadium.

"What I like most about the Maracana Stadium is the fans. That's been the case from day one. I immediately felt a special connection with them during the unveiling because even though I had not shown anything, even before I put on the jersey to play - it was the first time I wore the jersey with jeans and no sneakers - they were already supporting me. They chanted my name. It felt very special. I will remember it for the rest of my life. To me, this connection with the fans is much more important than the title. So, I won the championship more for them than for myself," he said.