Cruzeiro’s board wants to carry out two important negotiations this week to hand over the entire squad for the 2025 season to coach Fernando Diniz. Celestial directors hope to seal the signings of defenders Valentín Gómez, from Vélez Sarsfield-ARG, and Fabrício Bruno, from Flamengo.
Talks with Vélez are close to an agreement for Valentín Gómez, 21, to sign a contract with the club. Cruzeiro agreed to pay US$10 million (R$60 million) for 90% of Gómez’s economic rights. Vélez will preserve 10%.
The negotiation was “stuck” due to a specific detail. According to Itatiaia’s investigation, a tax issue still prevents the officialization of the deal between Brazilians and Argentines. The responsibility for paying taxes for the transaction is the issue that has delayed the end of the negotiation until now.
Gómez has a contract with Vélez until the end of 2026.
Fabrício Bruno
In relation to Fabrício Bruno, he presented Flamengo with a new proposal with values close to 8 million euros (R$ 50.9 million), including bonuses for productivity.
The fixed amount offered by the celestial board was 7 million euros (R$44.5 million) plus 800 thousand euros as a bonus for productivity, which could take the negotiation to around R$51 million.
This is the second offer from the Cruzeiro board, since Flamengo rejected Cruzeiro’s first proposal. Alexandre Mattos, CEO from Cruzeiro, wants to acquire 70% of Fabrício Bruno’s rights.
According to behind-the-scenes information, Fabrício Bruno is not among coach Filipe Luís’ preferred defenders. As a result, the athlete is interested in returning to Toca da Raposa II. The current Flamengo player was revealed by Cruzeiro.
Fabrício Bruno has a contract with Flamengo until the end of 2028.
History on Cruzeiro
Fabrício Bruno was revealed in the youth teams. He played in 2016 for the first team, with eight games and one goal scored. He was loaned to Chapecoense between 2017 and 2018.
In 2019, the player made 26 appearances for Cruzeiro in the year in which the club was relegated to Series B of the Brazilian Championship. He ended up leaving the club in court, after claiming overdue labor rights.
The defender arouses the interest of Fernando Diniz, Cruzeiro coach, and admirer of Fabrício Bruno’s characteristics.
Valentin Gomez
Valentín Gómez was revealed by Vélez in 2022 and has been at the club since then, being a highlight of the team in 2024, when they won the Argentine Championship. This year, the left-handed defender, who also plays as left-back, played 43 games, 42 of which were as a starter.
Since becoming a professional, Gómez has played 110 games for Vélez, 105 of which as a starter. He scored three goals and made one assist.
In 2023, the young defender was a starter for the Argentine National Team in the U20 World Cup. He made four appearances in the team’s campaign, eliminated in the round of 16 by Nigeria.
Cruzeiro is planning to sign Argentine defender Valentín Gómez, from Vélez Sarsfield-ARG. The player has a contract with the Argentine club until the end of 2026, but there is already an agreement for the defender to play for Raposa from 2025.
