Abel Ferreira promised “a magical night” to Palmeiras fans, kept his promise and cried. In a display of emotion atypical for his standards, the 46-year-old Portuguese knelt on the Allianz Parque lawn after qualifying for the Copa Libertadores final, on Thursday night (30), and experienced a moment of catharsis.
The tears appeared again minutes later, during his press conference. After the turnaround in the semi-finals of the competition – defeated 3-0 in Quito, the team won 4-0 at LDU in São Paulo –, the coach seemed touched when mentioning his family and admitted that the demonstration was also the result of hurt.
“I was very hurt by what I heard from part of the fans, I wasn’t expecting it,” he said, referring to the insults received at Allianz itself, in August, in the elimination of the Copa do Brasil against arch-rivals Corinthians – who had already punished the Alviverde team in the decision of this year’s Campeonato Paulista.
It is because of this episode that the renewal of his contract has not yet been signed. Besieged by clubs from different countries, Ferreira only has a commitment to Palmeiras until December. A new agreement is on his desk, lasting until December 2027, and he is reluctant to take up the pen.
“I told Leila: ‘It’s not worth signing, because I’m not going to continue if there are no conditions to sign’. There are clubs that call me from all sides. It’s hard to be in Brazil. Not for the club. But because you journalists are demanding, tough, some go beyond the point, and sometimes I question myself if that’s what I want,” he said.
Despite this sentence, Abel repeatedly indicated that he intends to continue. The interview was interrupted by the association’s president, Leila Pereira, who took the microphone and, with her finger raised, pointed out the Portuguese as “the greatest coach in the history of Palmeiras, absolutely without a doubt”.
Ferreira, who had already praised the leader before this intervention, responded that “Palmeiras is an oasis”. What bothers him in Brazil is not the internal structure of the club, but the external pressure and the tantrum from part of the fans – especially the organized ones –, those who cursed him in the failure against Corinthians.
There were no insults towards Ferreira on Wednesday night, in the biggest upset in the history of the Copa Libertadores semi-finals. A three-goal deficit was reversed for the first time at this stage of the competition, which ensured a Brazilian final and the 25th title for a Brazilian club, which will equal record-holding Argentina.
The decision against Flamengo is scheduled for November 29, at the Monumental stadium in Lima, Peru. While the date doesn’t arrive, Palmeiras is fighting with Flamengo for the Brazilian Championship trophy. And Abel tries to leave behind the hurt he has been carrying since the August offenses.
He repeated the metaphor of “a perfect marriage, with an imperfect woman and an imperfect man who do everything they can to not give up on each other.” “I don’t know if we’re going to win titles or not, but Leila knows what I want, the players know that I like coaching them. I’ve already been here for five years, what I thought would be five months. I like being here.”
