My team?

Text by João Areosa areosa@jsports.com.br

No, my dear reader, I'm not going to stand here and express the emotions and feelings of my debut at this newspaper, which I've read for years and years. The newspaper of Mario Filho and Nelson Rodrigues. Oh, just think, what a responsibility, especially for a rusty columnist who hasn't written in three months and is in desperate need of a lubrication.

Happy, yes. Nervous, no. So, let's move forward, especially because debutante jitters are just nonsense invented by soccer coaches, especially the coaches of the Brazilian national team.

Debut jitters... now don't give me that crap. If a team suffers from debut jitters, let the competition begin with the second match. We're done, end of story.

A conversation that I'm having with the reader right now, trying to recover emotionally from the madness of the last few Flamengo afternoons (My God, what kind of fans are these?), which are making me nostalgic and longing for the times when football was played with love and joy.

I miss the times when my brothers and I would go to the stadiums with my father, old Areosa, who decided to cover our souls in red and black. Red and black from head to toe. Without any shame.

As a boy, I watched, standing, crushed, trampled, crumpled, that match against América that won a third championship. A night when Dida fulfilled the expectations of those who love football. A night when Dida filled the net for the brave América. A truly delightful opponent. Oh, what a night, boy!

Am I a Flamengo fan? After spending an entire career trying to hide behind false modesty, I can assure you that the question is valid. Yes, I am a Flamengo fan. And if any reader decides that this columnist no longer deserves to be taken seriously, I can assure you that from this platform I will not distort facts and events. I have always lived off my salary, never on indignities or vileness. I will not change now after so many years of struggle.

Yes, I'm a Flamengo fan. And how wonderful it is to be able to sign such a bold and shameless confession. Getting older has its advantages.