{
  "id": 19817510,
  "title": "Former Brazil prolific goalscorer reveals he could have joined Barcelona: ‘I was close’",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/13/former-brazil-prolific-goalscorer-reveals-he-could-have-joined",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-11-13T14:23:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/former-brazil-prolific-goalscorer-reveals-142300529.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Brazilian football legend Mario Jardel has revealed that he was close to joining Barcelona during his career. Speaking to the media, the former prolific goalscorer disclosed that he was in talks with the Spanish giants and AC Milan. Known for his extraordinary goal-scoring abilities, Jardel spent most of his career at FC Porto, where he scored 168 goals in over 175 appearances. Although his international career saw limited opportunities, he had the chance to score twice in Galatasaray's 2-1 victory over Real Madrid. Despite his impressive club accomplishments, Jardel's senior appearances for the Brazilian national team were sparse, and he missed out on the 2002 World Cup despite being a deserving candidate.",
  "summary": "Barcelona have a history of housing some of the most prolific goal scorers and playmakers in history, and while the recent past may not have followed the same trend, Brazilians have always been a key ...",
  "key_points": [
    "Mario Jardel was close to joining Barcelona during his career.",
    "He spent most of his career at FC Porto, scoring 168 goals.",
    "Jardel had two goals in Galatasaray's 2-1 victory over Real Madrid."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}