Gabriel Barbosa finally seems to have reached his potential. After being revealed by Santos and sold to Internazionale, the striker was eventually loaned to Benfica. In both European teams, he was unsuccessful and much criticised.
He returned to Santos in 2018 on loan and did well again, but was not used in Europe after he came back from loan. So he was out loaned again, this time to Flamengo, and in the Carioca team, he ended up becoming an idol in just one season.
In the first championship won by Flamengo in the year, the Rio de Janeiro State Championship, Gabigol (as he is already very well-known) was the second top scorer and even won a place in the team of the best players of the championship. But this was just the beginning of a magical year.
In Flamengo’s first nine games in the Brazilian Championship, the team was coached by Abel Braga. During this period, Gabriel scored five goals. After coach Jorge Jesus arrived, Gabigol scored 19 goals in the next 27 games. With a total of 24 goals in 36 matches, he became the leading scorer in a single edition of the Brazilian Championship points era . For the second year in a row, he was the top scorer in the biggest championship in Brazil.
But that still wasn’t enough for Gabriel, he also wanted to be the top scorer of the continent's premier competition, and so he did. With nine goals in the Libertadores, he became the top scorer of the competition in 2019. An incredible seven of these nine goals were scored in the knockout phase. Gabriel was instrumental in the final, scoring both goals in the game.
Now this year Gabriel has one more tournament in which to shine: the FIFA Club World Cup. Maybe he’ll score goals in a possible final against the much-feared Liverpool? For him, this year, anything is possible.
After a lean period, Gabigol returned to play soccer with joy. He was called up for the Brazilian national team again and became an idol at one of the top clubs in the world. He won a title that Flamengo had not won since 1981, and he was the key player. He showed a simply phenomenal evolution in his game with Jorge Jesus, being deadly in front of goal.
The future is still uncertain: Gabigol wants a big salary and Internazionale's demand is also very large. But what is the price of such a superstar? This is probably something many fans of the Flamengo team are now wondering. And many will probably conclude that he is priceless.
If Gabriel stays, his idolatry will only grow and he may become one of the biggest names in Flamengo’s history. With the money the team has, they can recruit good players every year, enabling them to win even more titles.
It is often said that players who have failed in Europe end up being useless. Gabigol has shown just the opposite: it is OK not to do well in Europe. Football goes far beyond the glamour of the Champions League. There may be great players in South American football who have failed to do well in Europe.
And they can become idols, win titles and even come victorious from their own previous failures.