How much did the ‘Pedro Martins management’ spend on signings at Cruzeiro? < On Attack

With the challenge of assembling competitive squads with leaner budgets, Pedro Martins made 65 signings at the helm of Cruzeiro during the 2 years and three months of work in Belo Horizonte. The report of On Attack carried out a survey of the approximate amount spent by the Minas Gerais club under the management of the football director, who accepted the invitation to take over the role at Vasco.

The strategy used by Martins to attack the market was very clear during this period at Toca da Raposa 2. In most of the movements, he sought out athletes who were in the final stages of their contracts with their teams or without a club. Of the 65 reinforcements, 51 were hired along these lines.

Only 14 players generated direct costs to the coffers of the Sociedade Anônima do Futebol (SAF), which corresponds to R$64 million in total. This amount was not necessarily paid to the clubs that held the economic rights of the players. In some situations, Cruzeiro committed to paying off debts in installments.

The survey carried out by On Attack does not consider the ‘gloves’ paid by the board to hired reinforcements.

In 2022

Cruzeiro’s first expenditure on reinforcements was to assemble the team to compete in Series B of the 2022 Brazilian Championship. However, Pedro Martins was very economical. He formed a squad full of athletes who lost space at their clubs and were loaned out until the end of the season.

The celestial team only had to pay R$48,000 for the early release of attacking midfielder Leo Pais. He resigned with Montevideo Wanderers, from Uruguay, and signed with Cruzeiro.

Although he signed with Lucas Oliveira and Neto Moura on loan, Raposa disbursed R$5.5 million to arrange for the two to remain in 2022. The former Atlético-GO defender cost R$4 million, while the former midfielder of Mirassol was worth R$1.5 million.

Another athlete who had a similar situation was Bruno Rodrigues. The striker was loaned by Tombense, but had 33% of the economic rights acquired by Cruzeiro for around R$5 million that year.

In 2023

Back in Série A of the Brasileirão after three years in the Second Division, Cruzeiro had a slight increase in investment power in 2023. Between several mistakes and few successes, Pedro Martins formed the team spending R$39.1 million.

Still in the Mineiro dispute, Cruzeiro paid R$3.5 million to sign striker Matheus Davó, who belonged to Corinthians. Afterwards, he paid R$1 million to Ferroviária to permanently acquire midfielder Ian Luccas and R$2 million to buy right-back Wesley Gasolina from Juventus, in Italy.

Cruzeiro made two other major investments by enabling the arrivals of strikers Wesley and Arthur Gomes, who left Palmeiras and Sporting, from Portugal, respectively. Each one cost R$16 million.

At the end of the year, Cruzeiro also made official the purchase of young Fernando, who signed a contract until December 2026. The celestial club needed to pay R$650,000 to Água Santa to transform the loan into a definitive acquisition.

In 2024

In 2024, Pedro Martins responded to the requests of former coach Nicolás Larcamón and invested in ten reinforcements that, together, cost R$14.4 million. However, only four arrived through financial compensation.

Lucas Romero (R$5 million) and Juan Dinenno (R$5.5 million) left Mexican football to make a permanent deal with Raposa. The midfielder was at León, while the center forward played for Pumas.

Lucas Villalba and Álvaro Barreal transferred on expensive loans. Argentinos Juniors, from Argentina, released the defender for R$2 million, almost the same amount demanded by FC Cincinnati, from the United States, for the attacker: R$1.9 million.

Hiring of the ‘Pedro Martins management’ at Cruzeiro

Goalkeepers:

• Gabriel Brazão – loaned by Inter Milan (ITA)
• Gabriel Mesquita – free on the market after termination with Água Santa
• Rafael Cabral – free on the market after termination with Reading (ING)
• Anderson – signed a pre-contract when he was still at Athletico-PR
• Leo Aragão – signed a pre-contract when he was still at Bragantino
• Gabriel Grando – loaned by Grêmio

Defenders:

• Wagner Leonardo – loaned by Santos
• Zé Ivaldo (2022) – loaned by Athletico-PR
• Luis Felipe – released for free by PSV (HOL)
• Reynaldo – free on the market after not renewing with Goiás
• Luciano Castan – free on the market after termination with Guarani
• Lucas Oliveira – loaned by Atlético-GO, but was later purchased for R$4 million
• Neris – free on the market after leaving Al Hazm, from Saudi Arabia
• John Marcelo – loaned by Porto (POR)
• Zé Ivaldo (2024) – signed a pre-contract when he was still at Athletico-PR
• Lucas Villalba – paid R$2 million to Argentinos Juniors (ARG) for the loan

Sides:

• Gabriel Dias – free on the market after leaving Ceará
• Matheus Bidu – loaned by Guarani
• Marquinhos Cipriano – loaned by Shakhtar Donetsk (UCR)
• Igor Formiga – free on the market after terminating with Ponte Preta
• Wesley Gasolina – paid R$2 million to Juventus (ITA) for the purchase
• William – free on the market
• Marlon – free on the market after terminating with Ankaragücü (TUR)
• Helibelton Palacios – signed a pre-contract when he was still at Elche (ESP)

Steering wheels:

• Pablo Siles – loaned by Athletico-PR
• Willian Oliveira – loaned by Ceará
• Neto Moura – loaned by Mirassol, but was later purchased for R$1.5 million
• Wallisson – free on the market after termination with Ponte Preta
• Richard Coelho – loaned by Ceará
• Matheus Jussa – loaned by Fortaleza
• Ramiro – free on the market after not renewing with Corinthians
• Fernando Henrique – released for free by Grêmio
• Lucas Silva – released for free by Grêmio
• Lucas Romero – paid R$5 million to León (MEX) for the purchase
• José Cifuentes – loaned by Rangers (ESC)

Socks:

• Leonardo Pais – paid R$48 thousand to Montevideo Wanderers (URU) for the cancellation clause (termination)
• Fernando Canesin – free on the market after not renewing with Athletico-PR
• Chay – loaned by Botafogo
• Nikão – loaned by São Paulo
• Matthew Vital – free on the market after termination with Corinthians
• Ian Lucas – lent by Ferroviária, but was later purchased for R$1 million
• Matheus Pereira – loaned by Al-Hilal, from Saudi Arabia

Attackers:

• Rodolfo – loaned by América
• Jajá – loaned by Athletico-PR
• Rafa Silva (2022) – free on the market after not renewing with Wuhan Zall (CHI)
• Juan Christian – loaned by Azuriz-PR
• Waguininho – free on the market after not renewing with Coritiba
• Luvannor – free on the market after not renewing with Al Taawon, from Saudi Arabia
• Lincoln – loaned by Vissel Kobe (JAP)
• Matheus Davó – paid R$3.5 million to Corinthians for the purchase
• Henry Dourado – free on the market
• Bruno Rodrigues – lent by Tombense, but later had 33% of the economic rights purchased for R$5 million
• Rafael Bilu – free on the market after not renewing with Criciúma
• Wesley – paid R$16 million to Palmeiras for the purchase
• Gilberto – free on the market after terminating with Al-Wasl, from Saudi Arabia
• Rafael Elias – free on the market after terminating with FC Baniyas, from the United Arab Emirates
• Arthur Gomes – paid R$16 million to Sporting (POR) for the purchase
• Paulo Vitor – released for free by Real Valladolid (ESP)
• Fernando – loaned by Água Santa, but was later purchased for R$650 thousand
• João Pedro – free on the market after not renewing with Real Valladolid (ESP)
• Rafa Silva (2024) – free on the market after terminating with Jeonbuk Motors (KOR)
• Juan Dinenno – paid R$5.5 million to Pumas (MEX) for the purchase
• Gabriel Veron – loaned by Porto (POR)
• Álvaro Barreal – paid R$1.9 million to FC Cincinnati (USA) for the loan
• Marcelo Moreno * – free on the market