Marquinhos leaves Santa Cruz and signs with a Portuguese Second Division club
Forward Marquinhos has ended his spell with Santa Cruz and agreed terms with Chaves, a side in the Portuguese Second Division. The transfer was made possible by a clause set out from the start of the loan: the Tricolor do Arruda released the player, but secured 30% of the proceeds of any future sale.
A contract that already anticipated the exit
Marquinhos arrived at the Pernambuco club in early March, on loan from Maguary right after the end of the Campeonato Pernambucano. In the deal struck between the parties there was a clear condition: if an offer from abroad appeared, the player would have priority for release. It appeared.
Football executive Alex Brasil acknowledged that the signing had been arranged before he joined the management, but made clear the reasoning behind the decision to release the player. “I spoke with the athlete to find out whether he would be interested in staying. May the move bring us a 30% return”, he stated.
Eight games, two goals and a busy window
During his time in the tricolor shirt, Marquinhos played eight matches – most of them coming off the bench. He scored two goals, both in Série C. Modest numbers, but enough to draw attention on the other side of the Atlantic.
The forward’s departure makes Santa Cruz’s transfer window even busier. Before him, Quirino also left the squad, but in very different circumstances: the player took the club to court and obtained an indirect termination, with a claim exceeding R$1 million. Two names out in a matter of days. The Tricolor needs to rebuild the group while Série C rolls on at full speed.
From a financial standpoint, the retained percentage could become relevant depending on Marquinhos’s performance in Portugal. Chaves plays in the second tier of Portuguese football – a division that, historically, serves as a springboard to bigger markets in Europe. If the forward strings together a consistent run and raises his value, Santa Cruz reaps the fruits of the negotiated clause without having spent a single real on the original signing.
