Malcom was at the airport waiting for the private jet taking him to sign for Roma until a call arrived from Barcelona, revealed Jonathan Cafu.
Both Bordeaux and Roma had announced a deal was struck for the 21-year-old winger, yet he never even turned up in the Italian Capital.
His former Bordeaux teammate Jonathan Cafu revealed to Bleacher Report what happened on that bizarre day, July 23.
“He invited me for a farewell lunch at his house. It was around 4 when I left his place – he had not reached a deal at that stage.
Malcom was at the airport waiting for the private jet taking him to sign for Roma until a call arrived from Barcelona, revealed Jonathan Cafu.
Both Bordeaux and Roma had announced a deal was struck for the 21-year-old winger, yet he never even turned up in the Italian Capital.
His former Bordeaux teammate Jonathan Cafu revealed to Bleacher Report what happened on that bizarre day, July 23.
“He invited me for a farewell lunch at his house. It was around 4 when I left his place – he had not reached a deal at that stage.
“When I got home, my wife yelled from upstairs: ‘Malcom has been sold to Roma. They’re flying at 9pm.’ We decided to go there and say goodbye to them.
“When I arrived there, I asked him, ‘What happened, man?’ And then he went on explaining to me, 'my agent [Garcia] had a meeting with Bordeaux president [Stephane Martin] and decided that I'll go to Roma.' I was really happy for him, 'You're going to play in the Champions League and everybody will now hear about you.' He was packing his stuff and mentioned that a private jet would take them to Rome.
“But then we were there at the airport waiting for his representative to show up and nothing. Half an hour, an hour … Not a single word from him. Suddenly, out of thin air, he called Malcom and said he should return home. I did not understand it. He told me, ‘Dude, Barcelona have shown interest, a really strong one…’
“I was like, 'Are you serious, man?' and he confirmed, 'I'm not kidding, Cafu. Let's go back to my house.' He was really excited about it. Barcelona are another level—who could say no to them? He would be playing alongside the man (Lionel Messi). At first, I thought he was joking, but he wasn't.
“On Tuesday [July 24], I drove to the airport again and waited until the last minute to make sure that he had boarded the plane to Barcelona.
“Barca is a dream for every Brazilian—he is no exception. He trusted his agents and I can assure you that he never looked worried about it.”