Rio carnival 2018: When Barcelona star Romario asked boss Johan Cruyff if he could have time off to attend mega party in Brazil in 1994
Striker made pact with manager to be allowed to return home for street festival — and Dutchman recounted hilarious story
IT’S carnival time.
A time where people take the streets of Rio de Janeiro to party all day and night — while we Brits sit enviously thousands of miles away.
The lucky among us watch the drizzles through the protection of a window — and the unluckier ones just get drenched.
So, why don’t we cheer ourselves up with a brilliant tale about one of the great Brazilian party animals — Romario.
You might know him better as one of the most talented footballers of his generation.
Former Barcelona manager Johan Cruyff takes us back to January 1994 when his star striker cheekily asked if he could return to Rio de Janeiro for the carnival.
Fuming, yet famously philosophical, the Dutchman saw the opportunity to set the Brazilian a challenge.
Cruyff explains: “One time, Romario asked me if he could miss two days of training to return to Brazil for the carnival in Rio de Janeiro.
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“I replied: ‘If you score two goals tomorrow, I’ll give you two extra days rest compared to the other players.’
“The next day, Romario scored his second goal 20 minutes into the game and immediately gestured to me asking to leave.
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“He told me: ‘Coach, my plane leaves in an hour’. I had no choice but to let Romario leave for fulfilling his promise.”
Of course, the game was against none other than El Clasico rivals Real Madrid.
And Romario went one better than promised — netting a hat-trick as Barcelona won 5-0 at the Nou Camp.
Later that year, he would lead Brazil to World Cup glory in the USA and was named Fifa World Player of the Year.