Just a few weeks ago, it seemed like Crystal Palace shareholder John Textor was about to have a dream accomplishment in Brazil.
Following the purchase of Botafogo in the second division last year, the businessman had brought the club to the top of the first division table for 31 fixtures, standing 13 points clear.
Well, that all went wrong, and UOL now writes about the ‘historic disaster’ that the Rio de Janeiro side are about to star in.
The Brazilian season is coming to an end this week, and it’s not just that Botafogo lost that advantage and will no longer be champions. The big problem is that they’re currently 5th.
Many may say that those guilty of this collapse were the players and coaches, but that also has to do with Textor himself. Since manager José Castro left the club to move to Saudi Arabia, the owner never made the right decisions about who’d replace him, with Bruno Lage, Lucio Flavio and Thiago Nunes all proving to be wrong choices.
The Crystal Palace shareholder may see things in long term and still believe he’s doing a good job in Brazil, which he probably is, but it’s a fact that his first campaign in Serie A will be marked by how his club bottled it.
Perhaps Textor’s problems in France, where Lyon are bottom of Ligue 1, are worse than those in Brazil.
Things are going better in England, where Crystal Palace are currently 12th in the Premier League.
