KEY POINTS:
RIO DE JANEIRO - A fan of relegation-threatened Brazilian club Fluminense spent around US$25,000 ($37,000) to give advice to coach Paulo Cesar Gusmao on team selection.
The fan, who gave her name as Sheila Candiogo, took out paid advertising space on the inside back page of the Rio de Janeiro daily O Globo to send her tips to Gusmao, who is Fluminense's sixth coach this year and has yet to win a game.
"The appeal I'm making is simple," she wrote.
"Please field a real forward alongside Tuta...If possible Alex. Or Beto. But don't field Lenny. You'll be doing him a favour. Against Botafogo, Lenny tripped over the ball again.
"Please help Fluminense not to go down. Millions of fans will be eternally grateful to you. Many of them are children, who don't deserve this long agony."
Fluminense are 16th in the 20-team Brazilian championship with 36 points.
On Thursday they face Ponte Preta, who are one place and two points below them, in a match which will leave the loser in the relegation zone with five games to play.
The bottom four go down.
"I'm sympathetic to it because it reflects the sentiment of millions of fans in Brazil and abroad," said Gusmao, who has been in charge for seven games since replacing Antonio Lopes.
"I respect everybody's opinion but the one that prevails is mine."
- REUTERS
