The president began his speech by discussing the club's efforts to keep Paquetá at Gávea. "Many said we would have to face the second half of the year without him. Thanks to the player and his agent, we were able to prevent that. Our goal was to extend his contract, give him a raise, and increase the fine. But we need to understand that he had a dream of playing in Europe, and he wanted to go. In a few years, if we continue on this path, we will have so much financial power that we will be able to retain our players and even bring them back. Right now, there was nothing we could do. We tried to do everything in the best way for Flamengo," said Bandeira de Mello.

"It's reckless to think that any of us would be interested in parting with a player who's been here for years, adored by the fans and the national team. We're not happy about losing him. Because he has all these characteristics, he attracted interest from several European clubs, and for that reason, we've been trying to renew his contract since the beginning of the year. We need to understand what the player wants and needs. He envisioned playing in the Champions League, moving to a more structured football scene with a better schedule. It was his dream. The sport's greatest idols are there. We don't own the player; we have a contract and seek to offer the best structure. But that's the reality of Brazilian football. We managed to get through the mid-year transfer window without losing him, which was very positive. Lucas Paquetá stays until the end of the year and will help us throughout the season, but we needed to consider the player's perspective. The deal that was made was very good for Flamengo; the amounts were significant, and the money is largely for the next three years, which helps with the planning, among other things", explained Ricardo Lomba.

Bruno Spindel also spoke about the process and the red-black planning for the next season, in addition to emphasizing that Mais Querido always only has titles and victories in mind.

"The main point of everything we do is to ensure that Flamengo always wins the championship. Our biggest concern was that Paquetá wouldn't leave mid-year, but we achieved that thanks to the good relationship between the athlete and the agent. We conducted the entire negotiation process with the aim of not jeopardizing the 2018 or 2019 sports year, which could be affected if he left just before the end of the next transfer window. Making the deal now benefits the next sports year because we can plan ahead. We can still count on him in this title fight and still have time to organize the season. The amounts were very close to the fine, and the financial benefit was significant. It's great that Lucas is going to a red-and-black club like ours, a multiple Champions League champion. Every athlete wants to be among the best, to play against the best. He'll be able to rub shoulders with the best in the world in Europe. Flamengo's youth academy has evolved significantly, and the fact that these transactions involving our young players are happening demonstrates this. We want these young players to experience the best phases of their careers here as well. We want all these resources to be invested in football, because today we can do that." That's it. We're always thinking about titles, and that will always be our main objective. We've had countless offers, and a few days ago this concrete one arrived from Milan. We thought the values ​​and conditions were adequate for next year's planning. It hurts a lot to lose an idol and a guy who's been here since he was 11, but the transaction is excellent in the sense of being good financially and sportingly," said the CEO.