Luquinhas will have his first experience playing in professional Brazilian soccer
Not everything in life lasts forever, and in football, this maxim holds true. After two years playing for the New York Red Bulls, Brazilian winger Luquinhas is packing his bags to join Fortaleza and, consequently, fulfill a personal dream: playing in the top division of his native country.
The relationship between “Laion” and Luquinhas is not new. Before being signed by the New York Red Bulls, Luquinhas played for Legia Warsaw in Poland and had mentioned that Fortaleza had approached him, but the story didn’t have a positive outcome back then.
Now, the Cearense club has secured the purchase of Luquinhas federative rights in a deal that could reach up to $3 million, depending on contractual metrics, as MLS insider Tom Bogert revealed.
At the age of 27, Luquinhas possesses qualities cherished by every Brazilian. He is fast and has a remarkable ability to dribble past opposing players. These attributes led the New York Red Bulls to sign him. Despite a promising start to the 2022 season with goals and assists, Luquinhas’ performance gradually declined.
In 2023, the Brazilian suffered an injury, missing nearly two months shortly after the start of the MLS regular season. However, in the second half of the year, Luquinhas regained prominence, particularly with assists. The player participated in 70 games for the New York Red Bulls, scoring ten goals and providing 14 assists.
According to Mark Fishkin, host of The Seeing Red podcast, opposing teams quickly nullified Luquinhas’ style, affecting the Red Bulls’ number 82: “Luqi came into the team with a flourish, with the notion that he’d be the goal creator and scorer akin to Kaku. Sadly, opposing defenses figured out quite quickly that surrounding him with bodies took the pop out of New York’s attack, and did just that,” theorized.
Needed exit
Journalist Daniel McBain from Area Sports Network, who covers the club’s games at the Red Bull Arena, expresses that Luquinhas’ departure was necessary: “Overall thoughts of the signing now that he’s gone is disappointing. In the first couple of months, he was playing what I thought we got. But since then, he’s fallen off a major cliff and just seemed to lose his game, and a split was necessary if Red Bulls wanted to be successful in the future”, he asserts.
Obrigado, Luqui 🫶
Thank you for everything, Luquinhas! Best of luck at @FortalezaEC! pic.twitter.com/RfoQtmYxHo
— New York Red Bulls (@NewYorkRedBulls) January 12, 2024
McBain had hoped for a more fitting production from the Brazilian, considering he was a designated player, meaning he received a salary above the league’s salary cap: “My expectation of Luqui when he first came to Red Bull was he was going to be a starting ten that got ten goals ten assists every year, and he was going to be a major part of why this team was going to be good,” he analyzes.
Reinforcement
Club supporter Nick Cathcart believes the club might miss Luquinhas’s style of play but suggests that the Red Bulls may not necessarily need a replacement with the same qualities as the Brazilian: “Sure thing! The Red Bulls will miss his creativity and pace, which the team has been sorely lacking in the attack over the last two years. They may not need to replace his exact profile if Morgan and Forsberg can remain fit all year, but they will certainly need an additional playmaker who can contribute in the final third if the team hopes to win a trophy this year,” he states.
(Cover: New York Red Bulls)
