2nd-tier chief wowed by player who snubbed Sporting: extraordinary talent | OneFootball

If, when he arrived at Aves SAD, Pedro Lima was already at the club, that was not the case with Morita at Santa Clara, since it was through Diogo Boa Alma that the Japanese player was signed by the Azorean side. “He had a brilliant spell in Portugal. He arrived at Santa Clara midway through a season and immediately made a huge impact, in a year when they managed to secure sixth place and qualification for the first edition of the Conference League,” he recalls.

In that sense, the move to Lisbon to join the green-and-white squad ended up being natural. “He adapted very quickly to that level of demand. He was also already captain of the two-time Japanese champions when he came to Santa Clara. Because of that, he was never a player who showed any kind of pressure, as he was also used to playing for the national team and always performing at a very high level, very reliably,” he says.

Across the various seasons, Diogo Boa Alma has only one regret: “It’s a shame, here and there, the muscle injuries he picked up, because he was a key figure in Sporting’s setup in recent years. It does not surprise me because he is a player of extraordinary talent, with an above-average work rate, and one any coach likes and wants to have in their team,” he says.

After saying goodbye to Sporting and the José Alvalade Stadium - with his departure having already been confirmed several months ago - in the final match of the national championship, on May 16, the Japanese player will leave Portugal. Beginning a new chapter, Leeds, in England, should be the final destination for the 31-year-old player.

Diogo Boa Alma says he is happy for Morita and states that he has no “resentment” regarding his departure. “I only wish that he achieves the best for himself in his career. He has the ability to play in the top-5 leagues at a very high level because he has the quality for it. He is a friend as well as an extraordinary player,” he concludes.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.