On Sunday evening, O Dia journalist Venê Casagrande said Botafogo accepted a €10m offer from Nottingham Forest for Matheus Nascimento.
The reporter had to access to a document which was signed by a club director, and the only thing missing for the operation to be done was the player’s positive response to the move.
It turns out that just hours after the story came out, Botafogo owner John Textor got in contact with O Dia to explain his version of the facts.
The club chief told the outlet he did not accept Nottingham Forest’s offer, and claimed there are ongoing negotiations, including with other clubs.
According to John Textor, Botafogo are also building a plan for Nascimento’s future, and ‘decisions will be taken very carefully’. He even highlighted that this is just the start of the transfer window and other bids are expected to arrive.
This is a conflict between a very good journalist saying one thing and the club owner saying another, so there’s probably a lot of truth in what is being claimed, and it’s likely something stood in the way before the sale.
That could be the player’s rejection to Nottingham Forest, with Botafogo not willing to admit they accepted the bid, as that could harm negotiations with other clubs.
