Andre's journey from the Maracana to Molineux

South American football journalist Tim Vickery provides expert insight on Andre following the Brazilian's move to Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Player analysis - Andre

Of all the Brazilian central midfielders to have made their way to the Premier League in recent times, Andre is perhaps the most intriguing and maybe also the most vulnerable.

The 23-year-old joined Wolves from Fluminense of Rio, just as the summer transfer window closed. His new team-mate Joao Gomes was once his bitter midfield rival in the famous Flamengo v Fluminense Rio derby.

Now, wearing the same shirt, they offer an interesting contrast.

Joao Gomes is already a fans’ favourite as a tough-tackling ball winner. But he has spoken about how much he needed to sharpen up when he first arrived in England, how initially it was too easy to take the ball away from him.  

Andre lacks the pitbull physique of his new team-mate, and may find the process of adaptation even tougher.

He is certainly going to be tested. But in comparison with Joao Gomes, Andre does offer more on the ball.

Growing importance 

Andre was a 12-year-old striker when Fluminense discovered him in his native northeast of Brazil. They brought him down to Rio in the southeast, and as he moved up the youth ranks, he moved backwards on the field, from striker to attacking midfielder to defensive midfielder. 

He made his senior debut in 2020, but it was two years later that he really started making a name for himself. He had already switched from the No 35 shirt to No 7 - an indication of his increasing importance.

But it was the arrival of coach Fernando Diniz (below, right) in May 2022 that gave Andre a massive kickstart.

Gloriously unconventional, Diniz immediately went about changing Fluminense from the cautious team with a deep-lying defence that he inherited. His side would play possession-based football in which there were no fixed positions.

Sometimes the entire team would gather around the ball and improvise their way through intricate passing moves. They were a side with little formal structure - where the task of supplying that fell to Andre.

He now had acres of space to protect - and his task grew bigger as the match progressed. Diniz would often take off a centre-back in the second-half, and ask Andre to cover that space as well. 

He was simultaneously playing in defence and in midfield. This, of course, required great mobility, good footballing sense and sound timing in the tackle.

Andre's timely tackle for Fluminense

And Andre was also handed massive responsibility when the team had the ball. Fluminense made a point of playing out from the back, regardless of the match, opponent or circumstances. 

Some might remember them against Manchester City (below) in the final of the FIFA Club World Cup in December 2023. They went a goal down in the opening minute, and, undismayed, responded by staying true to their style. 

At one point, Fluminense were baiting the City pressure and playing the ball almost along their own goalline.

Andre was the main man in all of this, continually receiving the ball under pressure in areas of the field where losing possession would almost certainly mean conceding a goal.

He handled this with great style, staying calm, improvising a solution and often playing the first significant pass forward as Fluminense set their attack in motion.

Premier League interest

Andre was tailor-made for the Diniz game plan. The two of them made a pact. Andre would stay through the mid-2023 transfer window, although there was plenty of interest from Premier League clubs.

Liverpool reportedly signalled that they would be willing to offer around £30million. Fluminense and Andre held firm. 

“From a merely financial point of view,” said Rodrigo Capelo, the leading expert in Brazilian football finance, “turning down this offer is an irresponsibility.” 

But the club had their eyes on a prize. Fluminense were seeking to win the Copa Libertadores, South America’s Champions League, for the first time, and Andre was simply too important to lose.

Mission accomplished - they beat Argentina’s Boca Juniors in the Maracana stadium last November to lift the title - Andre’s days in Rio were clearly numbered. But after tasting glory, the club now had to accept the consequences of their decision.

In comparison with the summer of last year, Andre is now more experienced, with that Libertadores title and five Brazil caps to his name.

But the way that the transfer market works, is that European clubs are buying South Americans much more on promise than on reality. 

Back in April, Andre turned 23 - often seen as the cut-off point for a move to a major European club. And so it was always likely that he would be worth less this year than he was in 2023.

Moreover, he suffered a knee injury, and Fluminense’s form slumped to the extent that they were on the bottom of the league table and Diniz was sacked.

So where would Andre go? Liverpool were no longer interested, and after chasing the player for a while, Fulham also dropped out. It seemed possible that he might be a back-up for Manchester United, in case they were unable to land Manuel Ugarte.

And so, soon after it became clear that Ugarte was on his way to United, Andre signed for Wolves for a fee of around £20million, making his debut in the 86th minute of the 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest.

Fluminense had made it clear that they wanted to keep Andre for the quarter-finals of the Copa Libertadores, in the middle of August. They came through, beating compatriots Gremio on penalties. 

But at the end of the evening, Andre took on an air of melancholy. He would not be around for the semi-finals in the middle of September. The other players left the pitch, but he stayed, slumped against the goalpost, looking round the giant bowl of the Maracana, taking in the scene.

At the time he did not know exactly where he would be going, but he was clearly well aware that he would be on his way - and now we all know that he has traded the Maracana for Molineux.