Romelu Lukaku tried to get Manchester United team-mate Andreas Pereira to play for Belgium, claims midfielder
Pereira, 22, has decided to represent Brazil instead and has received a call-up for their upcoming games against the USA and El Salvador
Andreas Pereira has revealed Manchester United team-mate Romelu Lukaku tried to persuade him to play for Belgium.
The midfielder - who was born in Belgium - went against the advice of Lukaku to declare his allegiances for Brazil, where his parents are from.
And the 22-year-old's decision to play for the five-time World Cup winners seems to have been vindicated after receiving his first call-up for Brazil's games against the USA and El Salvador during the international break.
Pereira told : "He [Lukaku] tried to convince me.
"He spoke to me: ‘You have to play for Belgium’.
"He came to talk to me, he’s always talking to me.
"I told him ‘it’s difficult, Lukaku, can’t do it, it’s not the same. Playing for Belgium is something else.
"Playing for the Brazilian national team… It’s Brazil, I feel at home’. Then Lukaku said: ‘If that’s the way it is, you have to follow your heart’.
"And then he respected my decision."
Pereira was in Belgium when the Red Devils beat Brazil 2-1 in the World Cup quarter-finals.
And he also revealed the stick he received was tough to take.
He added: "It was complicated. I was in Belgium watching and it was difficult to see Brazil lose. Everybody messing with me. Wow, it was… I was very angry.
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"I have a friend from Belgium and I was watching it with him.
"I couldn’t do it, I left the room, I got very mad.
"And they all had a laugh, my father’s friends saying ‘wow, look at Brazil there, you have to choose Belgium, you have to choose Belgium’.
"I said, 'I can’t do it, I can’t do it’.”