It is a thing of pride to represent your country and not everyone get the chance to wear the colours of Italy or Brazil even if you play for a club like Juventus, as they are two of the football powerhouse in the world.
Softfootball can report that Juventus and Brazil defender Gleison Bremer turned down the chance to represent the Italian national team because he felt that he could integrate properly with the Azzurri.
Speaking to ESPN via football-italia about the situation, the player revealed that it didn’t sit well with him that’s why he made the decision to wait for the Brazil national team. He said:
“It didn’t seem right. The idea was there but I come from the heart of Bahia and suddenly becoming Italian felt very forced to me.”
Bremer explained further that Italian national team head coach at the time, Roberto Mancini encouraged him to switch nationality to Italy but he still refused because his loyalty is firmly with Brazil.
“I even spoke about it with Mancini who told me I was eligible for a passport through my wife.”
he said.
Bremer chose his native Brazil over Italy and never regretted it.
“I even imagined the first day at the training camp – maybe someone would have asked me ‘What are you doing here?’ And, honestly, I wouldn’t have liked that.”
Bremer joined Juventus in 2022 from Torino after being named the top defender of the 2021-22 Serie A season. On September 9, 2022 he was invited to the Brazil team for friendlies against Ghana and Tunisia.
He made his debut against Ghana on 23 September, in a 3–0 win. On 7 November, he was named in the squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Softfootball had reported earlier that Bremer may go into next season without teammate Dusan Vlahovic as he is rated surplus to requirement by Juventus and thereby his contract may be terminated early.
The 28-year-old Bremer is a physically strong centre-back with excellent aerial ability and sense of positioning. A versatile player, he has notable speed and his football idol is Brazilian defender Lúcio.
