Former coach of the Rio de Janeiro team was harshly criticized by fans after the clash with Palmeiras in the intercontinental tournament
John Textor, owner of Botafogo’s SAF, made a statement this Thursday about the dismissal of coach Renato Paiva. The coach left the club at the end of June, following Palmeiras‘ elimination from the Club World Cup.
“Why did we fire Renato Paiva? He broke his own principles. We hired him because he has a kind of five vertical lines of spacing. He’s a positional coach. And then, honestly, our fans gave him a beating down there. He started breaking his principles and getting defensive. We were playing defensively,” he said during an appearance on the ‘TalkSPORT’ podcast. The former coach of the Rio de Janeiro team was harshly criticized by fans after the match against Verdão. The team’s reactive approach was the main reason for the attacks on the Portuguese coach.
“We should have beaten Atlético Madrid. We should have beaten Palmeiras. We’re a better team than Palmeiras. He broke his own principles, and that happened in ten games. The decision was made over the course of ten games,” he added.
John Textor Demands an Attacking Stance from Botafogo
Textor, in turn, spoke with Paiva before the match against Palmeiras. During the conversation, the American reportedly expressed his desire for a more aggressive approach for this match, but was frustrated by the team’s performance.
“I asked him, ‘Coach, what was the best game you’ve ever played in your coaching career?’ He said, ‘Well, PSG.’ I asked, ‘But this isn’t PSG. You’re playing Palmeiras today. It’s time to play football. So, go out there and kick some ass, okay?’ What do we do? We sit back and watch them advance. So, for ten games, he became increasingly defensive,” he stated.
“You’re recruiting players at Botafogo with an intelligent and technical profile. Quick on the ball, quick on their feet. We want the ball to move like crazy. That’s our philosophy. When the coach arrives and he agrees, we hire him, and then he starts going against the grain. The entire football department comes to me and says, ‘We have to do something.’ I did,” he concluded.
To replace Renato Paiva, Botafogo hired Davide Ancelotti, Carlo Ancelotti’s son, on Wednesday. The Italian worked as his father’s assistant coach with the Brazilian national team and will have his first coaching experience at Glorioso. The club must register the new manager with the BID (CBF’s Daily Information Bulletin) by this Friday so he can debut this weekend. Botafogo will face Vasco in the Brasileirão on Saturday at 6:30 pm (Brasília time) at Mané Garrincha Stadium.
