At 58 years old, Cuca says today he laughs whenever he hears about the lucky wine pants at Palmeiras, the bus that couldn’t back up before the departures at Botafogo or the black cat he found in the middle of a bad phase on his first pass through Santos, in 2008.
“When I die, that will stay. But it’s all bullshit, my superstition is my faith,” guarantees the coach to Folha.
The follies are part of a collection of folkloric superstitions attributed to him by the 22 clubs he has managed since Uberlândia, in 1998, the first opportunity after he ended his career as a player.
Brazilian champion for the second time in his career – he had already won the title in 2016 with Palmeiras –, the trophy that ended Atlético-MG’s 50-year period on December 2, crowns the best year since becoming coach.
“I arrived at Santos [em 30 de julho de 2020] with suspicion and I even had my health at risk, in the last stage before being intubated [por complicações da Covid-19]. I couldn’t even imagine in my best dreams living a 2021 like this. It was my best career,” he says.
The coach now has another concern: to stay on top. “I won’t name names, of course, but there are coaches who were doing well a year ago and today they are no longer even remembered. That’s a fear we have,” he explained.
Cuca’s fear is caused by the forgetfulness of renowned colleagues, who are currently unemployed, even after important achievements. After winning the Libertadores by Atlético-MG, in 2013, after two years in China, he spent four months looking for a club until Palmeiras was invited in April 2016.
“I often hear this: ‘Cuca doesn’t do long-term work, he’s struggling to stay in the clubs.’ regenerate me too”, he says.
“The coach in Brazil manages very well. I was at Santos and I lived the opposite of the situation here. I drove a bunch of kids, the club had no money and had back wages”, he adds.
The certainty that it will continue on the rise can be achieved again by faith. Assisted by the Minas Gerais club, he got in touch with Renê Santana, son of Telê, Brazilian champion coach in 1971, to get the guarantee to fulfill the former coach’s promise to walk to the chapel of the church of Nossa Senhora do Perpétuo Socorro, in the district of Pires, in Congonhas. At the time, Telê did not complete the entire journey on foot.
“It’s 41 km from the point where Telê left with the vehicle to the chapel. I’ve already talked to the son, I just haven’t had time yet. I took great care to talk to him, who offered to go with me. This year or so at the beginning of the next one I’ll do it, but I’ll hide it. There’s still the CBF Pro License to take.”
With Galo, in addition to Brasileirão, he won the state of Minas Gerais and is close to the title of the Copa do Brasil, after the 4-0 victory over Athletico Paranaense in the first match. Even so, the coach recalls that the season was in check shortly before the 1-0 victory over Internacional, on October 2, at Mineirão.
At the time, the team had just been eliminated unexpectedly for Palmeiras in the semifinals of the Libertadores and had not won for three matches.
“Football entitles you to a day of mourning, and look at that. I preferred not to say anything that day, we had the chance to beat Palmeiras in both São Paulo and Belo Horizonte. I didn’t prepare a lecture afterwards, but I opened my heart and I talked about how I felt. We regained confidence,” recalls the coach.
The long-awaited title and the consolidation of the best year of his career also went through some setbacks. From rejection by the crowd on arrival to the public disagreement with Hulk, the team’s main player.
No. 7 was publicly criticized for not playing regularly at the start of the year. Afterwards, he softened his tone in a clarification via social media.
“We have a peaceful relationship. We had a disagreement because I had to mess with him to get an answer in a position he needed to change,” he explains. “Problems have been resolved.”
Appointed as the greatest coach in the club’s history for the titles he has conquered, Cuca avoids talking about his candidacy to succeed Tite in the national team after 2022.
The ambition, he says, is to continue enjoying as far as he can get the best moment of his career: “let’s see how far I can go”.
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