Real Madrid skipper Marcelo has been linked with a return to his native Brazil ahead of the January transfer window. It has been reported that Brazilian club Botafogo are keen on signing Marcelo who became the Real Madrid captain when the Spanish club decided not to extend the contract of former captain Sergio Ramos. Spanish international Ramos ended his long career at Real Madrid spanning 17 years to sign for French giants Paris Saint Germain (PSG) as a free agent.
Marcelo is widely expected to end his 15-year association with Real Madrid when his current deal expires next summer. The general consensus is that Real Madrid won’t offer him a new deal.
The aforementioned report stated that salary could be a big factor when it comes to Botafogo signing Marcelo and that the 58-cap Brazil senior national team player might need to take a pay cut to join Real Madrid.
Botafogo are not the only Brazilian club keen to sign 33-year-old Marcelo with former club Fluminense also interested in him. It has been reported that Fluminense are weighing the option of re-signing the left-sided defender.
Marcelo came through the youth system at Fluminense in the Brazilian league before he went on to represent the first team on 30 occasions.Botafogo target Marcelo moved from Fluminense to Real Madrid in January 2007. At Real Madrid, Marcelo became the best left-back in the world winning trophies along the way. He has won four Champions League titles and five Spanish La Liga titles at Real Madrid.