Venezuelan midfielder and Botafogo star Jefferson Savarino is unable to leave his country due to the armed intervention and bombing by the United States aimed at arresting President Nicolás Maduro. As reported by the Argentine News Agency during the historic day of this Saturday, January 3rd, Venezuela is experiencing an unprecedented crisis both for the country and for Latin America. The armed intervention and bombing by the United States at dawn were carried out with the aim of capturing President Maduro and his wife to transport them to the American city of New York and try them for 'narcoterrorism'. Weeks before this US incursion into Venezuela, the midfielder, who won the 2024 Copa Libertadores with Botafogo, arrived in his country to vacation with his wife and children in Maracaibo, his hometown, following a season without titles for the Rio de Janeiro team but with 5 goals and 6 assists for the Zulia youth product. With the 2026 season set to begin on January 15th against Portuguesa in the Campeonato Carioca, the Botafogo management and technical staff summoned the squad this Sunday to start preseason training. However, Savarino informed the club authorities that he will not be present because, due to the state of emergency in Venezuela, he cannot take flights to Brazil and must wait for the situation to normalize, something that does not seem likely to happen in the short term. Likewise, the Botafogo board reported that Savarino and his family are safe and sound in Venezuela after the geopolitical conflict broke out.
