Former player Michel Bastos, a sports commentator for CNN Brasil, revealed a troubled episode that lived with Mario Celso Petraglia, president of Athletico-PR, during his visit to the club. The story, told in the Domingol program, exposes a controversial side of the Paraná leader.
According to Michel Bastos, the incident occurred when he was recovering from a knee injury. Petraglia had determined that injured players should remain in the training center for a week without going home. The former athlete, then dating his current wife, decided to go out to lunch at home, contrary to orders.
Confrontation in the CT of Athletico-PR
After an argument with the club's doctor, Michel was called to a conversation with Petraglia in the Araucaria room of the CAJU CT. The former player reports: "He was sitting at the end of the table. Then they say to me: ‘Sit here at this end’. So I'm away from him," he said.
"The time he finished the call, hung up and came. ‘You never play football again. Who are you to talk shit to a Mario Celso Petraglia employee? You will never play ball again.’ And he slapped me on the head," said Bastos about the moment of tension.
"Then I went crazy, kid, angry." The former athlete claims that he wanted to leave on top of the leader of the Athletico-PR, but was contained by a physiologist present in the room.
Amazing outcome
Despite the confrontation, the story had an unexpected outcome. About ten days later, Michel Bastos received an offer to play in France. By signing the documents for his transfer to Petraglia's office, the player was surprised by the president's attitude: "He's coming to talk to me, it looks like nothing happened."
The former player concluded the story with an even more surprising revelation: "I left. When I'm there in France already, he goes on a radio and tells me I pedaled him, that's why he sold me."
Michel Bastos defended the Athletico-PR in the 2003 Brazilian Championship, was loaned to Grêmio and Figueirense for the club Paraná, and left in 2006 towards Lille, France.
