Wolves player back where he was rejected eight years ago – “Maybe I wouldn’t be here”

Wolves youngster Pedro Lima has revealed he personally pushed for a longer loan at São Paulo because he wants more time to play.

The right-back officially joined the Brazilian club from Wolves last week. The original agreement was supposed to run only until December.

Appearance-related targets could then have extended the deal into 2027. That’s now changed.

Globo Esporte explain that Lima himself asked for a longer agreement. His loan will instead run until June 2027, with no purchase option.

The 20-year-old explained his thinking during his official presentation on Thursday.

“This move is about getting more minutes, having more time,” he said. “I chose São Paulo.”

Lima wasn’t getting the football he wanted at Wolves, while his previous loan at Porto B didn’t provide much continuity either.

Instead of potentially returning to Molineux in December, he’s now given himself considerably longer to get regular games in Brazil.

Rejection changed his career

There’s also quite a story behind Lima ending up at São Paulo. He actually tried to join them eight years ago.

Lima grew up playing futsal and seven-a-side football with William Gomes, who is now a star winger at Porto, of all places. The pair travelled from Brazil’s north-eastern region for a trial at São Paulo in 2018.

William was accepted. Lima wasn’t. At the time, the current Wolves player wasn’t even a right-back.

“William is my friend, we’re rivals,” Lima joked. “We’ve played futsal and seven-a-side football since we were little. In 2018, we came here for a trial.”

“When I arrived, as a kid with a dream, I really wanted to wear the São Paulo shirt. I was a midfielder, I was told no and I was sad. But if it wasn’t for that no, maybe I wouldn’t be here.”

“Then I became a right-back. I saw there was a shortage in that position, and my agent and I started working on it. Eight years later, I’m here.”

That rejection ended up changing the direction of his career. Lima switched positions, later broke through at Sport Recife and eventually earned his move to Wolves.

Ready for his first chance

Lima also explained the thinking behind his new shirt number.

“The number 32 is because we’re [São Paulo] three-time world champions, have three Libertadores titles, and the two is for right-back,” he said.

Now he can actually start wearing it. The Wolves loanee completed his first training session with São Paulo’s squad on Wednesday. He’s also been registered and is available to manager Dorival Júnior.

So it’s exactly what he went back to Brazil looking for – a chance to play.