Botafogo insist retired Italian striker Christian Vieri will play for them next season.

The former Inter and AC Milan centre-forward declared last week that he had hung up his boots.

But FIFA agent, Frank Assunçao, insisted a deal with Botafogo was close: "It's all done, we have already closed the preliminaries, lacking only the final details."

Botafogo president Luiz Antonio Pereira also said: "In a situation like Vieri, he is also linked to marketing.

"The news is almost certain to 90%, although there are still some things to resolve."