Brazil legend Carlos Alberto has angrily slammed Manchester United for poaching the country's finest young talent.
The 1970 World Cup-winning star is outraged that United have signed Corinthians defender Dodo before the talented 17-year-old has even made a full appearance for his club, a move that Alberto claims is tantamount to the Red Devils raping Brazilian football.
"It is disgraceful United are allowed to rape Brazilian football," the former Brazil captain told the News of the World.
"The big teams have the money and can take our best players. It is a big problem in Brazil. The clubs cannot keep hold of them if they are good young players because they can make much more money in other countries.
Dodo, who is jointly owned by Corinthians and third-party investment firm Traffic Football Management. was signed for £5.4million and will join forces at Old Trafford with two other young Brazilians, namely the da Silva twins, Fabio and Rafael.
The move is set to strike football in Brazil another blow as it struggles to convince the samba nation's future stars that they should ignore the lure of a lucrative career in Europe until they are older.
In a bid to stop the exodus, Alberto is now seeking the help of FIFA.
"FIFA must do something. They have an obligation to save football. If we could have conditions where we could keep these players in Brazil it would be much better for us," he declared.
"Three or four years ago clubs had to pay teams if they wanted players but now many players are owned by agents - and clubs can't afford to keep them"
"They should change the law so at least until the age of 20 or 21 the best players are playing in Brazil and get some experience before moving to Europe."
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