Football Season Guide

Serie A
Brazil
Serie A
2019
Athletico Paranaense
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Athletico Paranaense

In


Madson (def) Grêmio, Robson Bambu (def) Santos, Khellven (def) youth system, Marquinho (mid) Fluminense, Leo Cittadini (mid) Santos, João Pedro (mid) Botafogo – return from loan, Tomás Andrade (mid) Atlético Mineiro, Erick (mid) Operário Ferroviário, Marco Ruben (att) Rosario Central, ARG – on loan, Poveda (att) Alverca, POR – on loan, Jaderson (mid/att) youth system

Out


Raphael Veiga (r)(mid) Palmeiras – return from loan, Pablo (k)(att) São Paulo, Guilherme (sp)(mid) Corinthians – return from loan, Marcinho (sp)(att) São Bernardo – return from loan

Last season saw the team from Paraná getting back at a respectful position in the table, having been 7th in Brasileirão, all this in a fantastic 2017 that had Furacão clinching the Sulamericana title. Just like in previous seasons, they have saved the A-team for the big competitions, in the first half of 2019, playing with the U-23 in the regionals. Even the head coach Tiago Nunes is only taking care of continental games before the start of Brasileirão. Star striker Pablo and attacking midfielder Raphael Veiga are gone, while Lucho Gonzales is not getting any younger. Argentineans Tomas Andrade and Marco Ruben arrived to replace Veiga and Pablo; Cittadini and Bambu can be good options on the long term. The fact that most of last season's team was kept is a big favourable point. The likes of Renan Lodi (LB) and Bruno Guimarães (CM) are big talents highly sought in Europe; Cirino, Rony and Nikão are a promise of constant threat in attack. It has been made clear that there are expectations for the club to reach the next level and get closer to the top teams in the country. One wonders if that won’t be hurting a squad that may not have yet the goods to deliver and meet the chairman’s ambition?

Target


Breaking through into the top four would be the ultimate goal, but improving last season’s 7th position will be considered a success as it is. The club is also expected to reach knock-out stages of Libertadores.