As the new Barclays Premier League season draws near, the finals of Brazil's continental tournaments are in full swing. Gremio, where Soares plays, won the Brazilian Gaucho Championship. Now Fluminense and Flamengo competed for the title in the state of Rio. In the end, Fluminense managed to win the title with a 4-1 victory. Real Madrid's former superstar Marcelo entered the world wave, only two months away from joining the team. Also, Chinese nationalized footballer Alan won the title with the team, his first since leaving the country to go overseas.
In the first leg of the final, Fluminense lost 0-2 on the road and had to score three goals at home in the second leg to overturn Flamengo.
The game went to the 30th minute of the first half when Marcelo scored for his team. Then, Cano scored twice in a row and Alex Sander added to his team's lead. Fluminense had a 4-0 lead by the 65th minute. Despite Flamengo scoring a goal in the final moments of the game, they lost 1-4 and were doubled by Fluminense with a total score of 3-4.
After the match, 33-year-old naturalized Chinese international player Alan won the trophy and joined the carnival with his wife and a pair of children. The family of four was happy. This is the first title that Alan has won since his first trip abroad as a Chinese player, and it is worth celebrating.
It's worth noting that Gallart also won a continental championship in Brazil with his team. However, according to Brazilian media reports, Gallart has applied for reinstatement of his Brazilian citizenship and is only an official announcement away from formally renouncing his Chinese citizenship.
It's not surprising that Allan only came off the bench for Fluminense in the new Rio de Janeiro Championship season. After all, the team has stars like Cano and Arias, and with the status of a foreigner, Allan has a good chance of subbing in.
With the new Barclays Premier League season starting this weekend, Allan has a chance to represent Fluminense, which is at least better than returning to the Chinese Super League. After all, the level of the two leagues is so different that there is no need to learn from Aixon and Fernando.
For the national team and head coach Jankovic, Alan's playing time in the Brazilian domestic league and winning the title with the team is naturally good news for the team's strength.
With local young players unable to take over, Alan's return to the national team will be a major boost. In the upcoming World Cup qualifiers in the second half of this year and the Asian Cup matches in the beginning of next year, Alan's joining will help Coach Jankovic to select the strongest squad to ensure that the team will successfully enter the top 18 of the Asian zone in the World Cup qualifiers and be able to advance to the top 8 of the Asian Cup.
