Sharjah: Gustavo Lazzaretti de Araujo has joined Sharjah Club as replacement for the injured defender and Brazilian compatriot Anderson Marcelo da Silva aka Marcelao, who crocked his knee in the team's pre-season training camp in Portugal.
Marcelao, not to be confused with the club's striker Marcelo Oliveira Silva better known as ‘Marcelinho', had joined just before pre-season from Greek side Asteras Tripolis but will now have to wait before he makes his Etisalat Pro League debut for ‘The Kings'.
The club won't reveal the severity of his injury, but he is believed to be already back in training with the first team squad, which one source at the club describes as an indication that it's not too serious.
Meanwhile, Lazzaretti, 26, from Curtiba, Brazil, but of Italian citizenship, started his youth career at Brazil's Serie D side Corinthians Paranaense in 1999, before catching the eye of English Premier League Chelsea in 2003.
He returned to Brazil with Serie A outfit Botafogo in 2004 then had loan spells in Italy's Serie A with Udinese and Treviso. He joined Brazil's Serie A Atletico Paranaense in 2006 and spent last year out on loan to Vitoria Guimaraes of Portugal's league one. Latest reports had the player signing for Brazilian Serie B side Sport Club do Recife as early as this August.
