Douglas Costa has played for some of the biggest clubs in Europe during his playing career, suiting up for Juventus FC and FC Bayern Munich. However, the 31-year-old could see the possibility of going from having played for Europe’s elite to the second division in Brazilian football.
Grêmio currently faces the reality of relegation as they’re seven points away from safety with only eleven matches left in the Brasileirão season. In addition, the Porto-Alegre-based club recently saw their supporters destroy a VAR monitor after it ruled a goal offside.
Fans understand that every point is precious, and losses only increase the panic of seeing one of the more historical clubs in Brazilian football head to the second division. Nonetheless, Costa, on loan from Juventus, appears to be ready to play in Serie B should Grêmio fall.
During a live broadcast on the Canal Pilhado (via TNT Sports Brazil), Costa commented on his continuity with Grêmio in case of a relegation to Series B.
“A lot of people say other things, if the team goes or if it doesn’t (to Serie B), I’ll stay here, I’ll stay here regardless of what happens. I came back for that, and I’ll never throw in the towel. I’ll keep fighting for the team to stay,” Costa said.
Furthermore, Costa stated why Grêmio finds itself in this situation of being relegated at the end of the season.
“It’s more psychological; I think we make a lot of coaching changes. Since I’ve been here, I think we’ve got about 4. For the head, it’s: ‘ah, I’m going to play’. And here comes the other: ‘ah, now I want to defend more’. And here comes another one: ‘I don’t want to defend, I want to attack’. The team fluctuates a lot,” Costa said.