Riquelme turns down offer after seeing Flamengo's defeat, Zinho

Flamengo director of football Zinho revealed that Boca Juniors playmaker Juan Román Riquelme has turned down the club's offer to move to Río de Janeiro.

Brazil’s powerhouse had targeted the 34-year-old midfielder as they are looking to add a high-profile playmaker to their squad.

However, Zinho claimed that Flamengo's 3-0 defeat against Corinthians on Thursday made Riquelme have second thoughts about joining the club, while also ruling out a move for Wolfsburg star Diego.

“Our priority was Diego, but since it was not possible because of financial reasons, we had to look at other possibilities”, Zinho told reporters.

“Riquelme is not going to come after all. His agent has just told me that. Flamengo would have given him a two-year contract, but he saw the game against Corinthians, which made him very insecure about this move. So, his reason for not accepting the transfer was based on football questions.”

Flamengo lie in 10th position in the Brazilian Championship, with 15 points from 10 matches.