Former Brazil striker Romario said on Monday he was waiting anxiously for a FIFA ruling on whether he could play for Vasco da Gama in the Carioca championship which starts this month.

Romario, who will be 41 later this month, is trying to find a way around a FIFA rule which prevents players from representing more than two clubs in a set 12-month period.

"It's not easy when you have to depend on somebody or something else," he told Brazilian television. "I hope FIFA understand my situation and let me do what I like the most which is to play football and score goals."

Romario, who says he has scored 987 goals in his career, left Vasco da Gama last March to play for Miami FC in the United States. After that, he played four games for Adelaide United in Australia.

Romario was officially presented by Vasco da Gama last week and began training on Thursday. He is training on his own in Rio de Janeiro while the rest of the squad are in the provincial centre of Resende.

His ambition is to score 1,000 goals before he retires and the Carioca (Rio state) championship, in which Vasco face a series of games against modest opposition, represents his best chance.

"I think it's going to be difficult to score 13 goals in the Carioca championship but it would be great," he added.

The Brazilian media have long questioned Romario's total, however, saying it includes goals from youth team matches and training games.