Martín Anselmi arrives in Rio to take over Botafogo: ‘He’s going to compete’

The 40-year-old Argentinian coach signed with SAF until the end of 2027.

Argentine coach Martín Anselmi landed in Rio de Janeiro in the early hours of this Saturday (3), at Galeão Airport, to present himself and start work at Botafogo. The former Porto coach, from Portugal, signed a contract with John Textor’s SAF until the end of 2027.

Martín Anselmi arrived accompanied by his assistants Pablo De Muner and goalkeeping coach Darío Herrera. Assistant coach Luis Piedrahita and physical trainer Diego Bottaioli arrived earlier. The 40-year-old coach spoke for the first time as Botafogo’s new manager.

“I’m very happy to already be in our new home, eager to get back to work. Tomorrow we’ll be with our staff at the training center to start a new season. I think we’ve been out of work for a long time, and the talks with Botafogo went very well; it was very simple, very easy,” said the coach.

“Botafogo is a big club with a huge fan base, so that was also part of what it took to get here to Rio. And we can expect a team that will compete. Our image on the field is to compete with great intensity,” he concluded.

Botafogo’s return after the holiday period will be this Sunday (4), at CT Lonier, where Anselmi will have his first contact with the athletes. The squad will undergo clinical examinations on the first day of activity of the 2026 season.

Martín Anselmi had been a free agent since mid-year, when he left FC Porto after their FIFA Club World Cup campaign. He had already been approached by John Textor at the beginning of 2025, but at the time, he ended up leaving Cruz Azul in Mexico for Porto.

The Argentinian coach had notable spells at Independiente del Valle in Ecuador from 2022 to the end of 2023. He then spent a year at Cruz Azul in Mexico before accepting an offer from Porto for the middle of the 2024/2025 season.

Anselmi had a brief stint in Brazil, at Internacional, in 2021, when he served as an assistant coach on Miguel Ángel Ramírez’s staff.

The negotiation with Botafogo was the fastest for a coach ever handled by SAF. Botafogo terminated Davide Ancelotti’s contract after disagreements about the continuity of physical trainer Luca Guerra, went to the market, received a “no” from Rafael Guanaes of Mirassol, and began negotiations with Martín. The conversation with John Textor went well, and the parties quickly reached an agreement for a two-year contract.