After three years, Felipe Melo should no longer wear the Fluminense shirt. The decision not to renew the veteran came from the Rio team itself.
The confirmation was made this Monday (16/12), by President Mário Bittencourt, during a press conference.
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Does Felipe Melo stay at Fluminense?
According to Mário Bittencourt, there is gratitude for the defender’s time at the club, who participated in important campaigns such as winning the Copa Libertadores in 2023, but who is now no longer in the team’s plans.
– I wanted to say a word that cannot be confused with friendship. Sometimes gratitude is lacking. I have a lot of gratitude for Felipe Melo, all the fans too. For the man he is, for the professional he is. I said when he came that we needed players with champion DNA. At that moment, we got it right – he explained.
On Felipe Melo’s side, the desire was to remain in the team with a view to the 2025 World Cup, which will be played in June. Due to the position of captain that Felipe Melo occupied on the team, the board even considered keeping him, but changed their mind when they saw that he would not have as much space in the team when talking about minutes on the field.
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Will Felipe Melo play for another team?
At 41 years old, the president of Fluminense left it open whether Felipe Melo would continue with another team or take other reins in his career. According to his words, he has a market and proposals can be heard, but he left open the possibility of “helping in other ways”.
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– I have a lot of gratitude for him. Therefore, we communicated in a transparent way that as athletes we were no longer interested. He’s coming in December, we have a meeting scheduled, and we believe that, if he’s interested, he can help us in other ways. Not necessarily in professional football, but, going through preparation, it can help us form a champion profile. There’s nothing defined, I don’t know what he defined about his career. It certainly has a market, there will be proposals. We have a scheduled conversation to decide what he wants in his career – he explained.
Players who leave Fluminense
- Marquinhos: loaned by Arsenal, will not renew.
- Felipe Alves: With little space, his contract ends in December and he will not have an extended contract.
- John Kennedy: loaned to Pachuca-MEX until December 2025.
- Felipe Melo: his departure was confirmed by Fluminense.
