In an interview, the coach praised his partnership with Felipao, detailed his departure from Atletico, and believes there is a structural problem with Peixe off the pitch.
November 27
2025
– 23:00
(Updated at 23:00)
Coach Paulo Torra took part in the Denílson Show last Monday (24/11) and did not shy away from controversy. The coach, who had a whirlwind spell at Santos in 2023, made a candid statement about the club’s unprecedented relegation that occurred that year. According to him, the story would be different if the council had continued its work.
“I speak with confidence: if Santos had stayed, we would not have been relegated,” Torra stressed, showing confidence in his methods.
He explained that his departure from Villa Belmiro occurred for reasons outside the field.
He revealed, “The Santos case was due to that interview after the match with Atletico. After that, the president was angry and the next day I was dismissed.” It is worth noting that Torra said that he did not feel secure in his position, and when asked about Santos’ bad moment, he replied that the club had been in crisis for 930 days, the time that then-president Andres Rueda was in office.
But the coach defended his short legacy at the club.
He asked: “During that period, I appointed players who helped in this momentary recovery in 2023, and I did not have continuity. The problem was not limited to Paolo Tora, because after I left, how many coaches were there?”
The former defender also critically analyzed the atmosphere at the Sao Paulo club.
He said, “Many fans made fun of it, but the evidence is there. Santos is a big club, but the problem is that the city believes that the club is only coming from there and is not expanding.”
He also revealed that he kept in touch with the actors after the fall.
“This year I have received many messages from players saying that if we stay we will stay in Series A,” Torra added.
Paolo Torra talks about his admiration for Felipao
Before talking about Santos, the coach praised his long partnership with Luiz Felipe Scolari. Torra worked as Felipao’s assistant for six years, a period he considers essential to his coaching.
“These six years I spent with Professor Felipe were my college,” he said.
He also expressed his regret that the five-time champion was not recognized in Brazil.
He said: “Many remember him only from 2014, but they forget his history. If he were in any country in Europe, he would have a statue, but we Brazilians underestimate the value of our product.”
Regarding his time at Atletico PR, Torra explained that the succession plan had already been in place since 2017.
He said: “We were in China and (Felipao) said: ‘Look, in 2022 I will stop and fire you as a coach.’”
He took over as coach of Furacao in 2023 and performed well statistically, but eventually left.
The coach concluded: “For some reasons, we were not able to complete this work, which was 73% successful.”
Follow our content on social media: Bluesky, Threads, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.