Sao Paulo eyeing move for Douglas Costa

RIO DE JANEIRO -- Sao Paulo are interested in signing Juventus winger Douglas Costa for the 2022 Brazilian Serie A season, the club's football director said on Thursday.

"There is a desire for Sao Paulo to sign Douglas Costa," Carlos Belmonte told Bandsports. "He is a world class player with European experience and he is very expensive given our current situation."

Belmonte added that efforts are being made to attract sponsors that can bankroll "a Douglas Costa-type player".

Costa is currently in the middle of a 12-month loan agreement with Gremio. However, the 31-year-old is reportedly set to leave the Porto Alegre outfit following their relegation to Serie B earlier this month. His contract with Juventus expires in June.

Belmonte also revealed the club has held talks with Toronto FC about the possibility of signing Venezuelan playmaker Yeferson Soteldo.

"Talking to Toronto, we learned that there was no intention for them to loan out Soteldo, just to negotiate a permanent deal," Belmonte said. "That cooled negotiations a little but we are not ruling him out. We have also been discussing other possibilities."