Farioli explains Rodrigo Mora exit to Roma as financial move | OneFootball

Francesco Farioli began by clarifying Rodrigo Mora’s move to AS Roma before addressing the upcoming match. The FC Porto coach described the transfer as “a financial decision” and said it was “a very good market opportunity that brought in the money a club like FC Porto, which needs to sell, requires.” Regarding the home match against FC Arouca, scheduled for Sunday at 8:30 pm at the Estádio do Dragão in the third round of the league, the Italian coach highlighted the opponent’s quality and recalled that “just like us, in their last 10 official matches they have seven wins, two defeats and one draw.” Therefore, “our best version will be needed as always, with even more attention and respect for what they have been doing.” FC Porto, FC Arouca and Marítimo come into this round with six points after winning their first two matches.

FC Arouca “They have been working with Vasco Seabra for a long time and had a great season last year. They were one of the teams I liked most since I arrived, and I remember how they played at Alvalade until they were reduced to ten men; I liked their mentality. What they did in the second half of last season was remarkable. Just like us, in their last 10 official matches they have seven wins, two defeats and one draw. They are in a good moment, they still have not conceded any goals and they have scored one more goal than us, so it will be a game that will demand our best version as always, with even more attention and respect for what they have been doing.”

Alan Varela is back and available “Alan has already trained normally with the team and is an option for tomorrow’s match. Oskar, Martim, Samu and Cláudio are still training separately.”

Rodrigo Mora’s move to AS Roma “The last two weeks have been full of different opinions. A few days ago, I gave some numbers about Rodrigo’s playing time and today I brought some notes. First of all, the decision to let Rodrigo leave was a financial decision. The 50 million euros represent a very high amount for the club, it was the most expensive signing in AS Roma’s history and one of FC Porto’s top five sales. It was definitely a very good market opportunity that brought in the money a club like FC Porto, which needs to sell, requires.”

Rodrigo Mora’s absence against Rio Ave “I truly believe it was a positive season. A season in which, first of all, he leaves the club as a champion. He leaves the club with two more titles on his résumé, with an honest and very fair relationship between me and him. Everything that has been said about me ‘pushing’ him out of the club is absolutely false. I believe I tried to help him in the way I believe football should be and how I see football. I think Rodrigo today is a more complete player. He is the same talent he was 14 months ago, but today he is a team player. I am absolutely sure that what he learned this year will be very, very good for his career, for the next chapter in Rome and wherever he goes to play. That is my assessment of Rodrigo’s situation. A boy who was lovely with us. A boy who did not play the last match because the negotiation was very close to being completed. A boy whom, before we went to the match in Vila do Conde, I called into the dressing room to say that, unless it was absolutely necessary, I would not use him because of the deal that was almost done. And I asked him to speak in front of the group before we went out onto the pitch. His speech was only about his love for FC Porto. So, once again, a player who is very young, but already with leadership and the ability to take on certain responsibilities. His speech was fantastic, it helped us go onto the pitch and win another match. I think his role and contribution for what he did here at FC Porto was very positive. And again, what I can say for him now is only to wish him great success, because he is a player who truly deserves everything good in his career.”

Rodrigo Mora’s and Gabri Veiga’s minutes “Regarding Rodrigo’s minutes, because I have already heard that he was third choice, he played a total of 1,946 minutes. Gabri Veiga played 2,699. In the league: Rodrigo played 1,177 minutes, Gabri 1,622 minutes. In the Europa League, they played exactly the same. I would say the gap is not that big. Regarding the starting eleven, 21 times for Rodrigo, 31 for Gabri. Coming off the bench, Rodrigo came on 33 times, Gabri 17. And fortunately, we only had them injured for two matches. When we have two players at the same level, we need to manage them.”

Are FC Porto looking for an alternative after Rodrigo Mora’s departure? “We will see what the market brings us. At the moment, the reality is that we are going into a match without Rodrigo, so in that sense, today the team is weaker than with Rodrigo.”

The words of Rodrigo Mora’s lawyer “Just to finish this subject: this morning I woke up to another reply and read on TV that I was provoking someone. I was only replying. I agree that I should not reply to a lawyer, but it is also true that a lawyer is a lawyer up to the moment he acts like a lawyer. The moment someone goes on a TV show to create an argument, expose certain things and place himself in a different position, as well as writing an editorial in a sports newspaper, then I believe there is a conflict of interests that needs to be addressed. And that is what I did. I believe that everyone involved in this work, and especially people who went to university and studied so much, should also understand the weight of the words we use. Because when people start talking about suffering, sadness and especially ‘Rodrigo Mora slowly killed by the coach’... then I think it is something that needs to be answered in some way. One of my favourite subjects at university was about the weight of our words and how they shape reality and our minds. I believe we have a very great responsibility here and, if you ask me, I did not like at all how things were handled. There was a lack of professional respect. But with this, we close everything about this ‘soap opera.’ As for Rodrigo, I will be his first supporter and I truly wish him the best from tomorrow onward, with the start of Serie A.”

The Southern media’s attention on Rodrigo Mora “I appreciate the attention the Southern media gave him and the way they protected an FC Porto talent. I was not expecting this level of love and attention for our boy. What I did not particularly like were some comments in recent days. There was noise outside, but internally my communication with him was direct and in the last few days we spoke three or four times. We never had any problem, but it was not an easy situation for him or for the team. It is part of the past and we have to move on.”

Seko Fofana remains in people’s minds “There are several possibilities and several names on the table, we will see what happens in the next few days and analyse what is best for us, the kind of player profile we want to bring in. We will see. Seko is loved by everyone here and left good memories. I usually speak with him, but he is not with us at the moment. I have already seen several names, but only one will come.”

The second season in charge of FC Porto “This season I have different knowledge from what I had last season, when every game was an opportunity to discover different things. Now we know more about what to expect, but we have to stay focused on every detail and prepare everything in the best possible way. If we talk about FC Arouca, in pre-season they had moments when they pressed man to man, something that did not happen much last season. They are a team with variety and several options on the ball, strong on set pieces. We are not on autopilot, it is an opponent I like to face.”

The importance of improving every day “We have to raise our level, not only in the Champions League, but above all in the league. The demands will be greater at every level, physical, tactical and in the need to always be at our best in every detail. We know our players and their limits, but we work at the limit in everything and so far the response has always been positive. We are at a moment when things can change, the market is open and the season is just beginning. Some players are out because of injury and that requires an adjustment in team management, but the players have worked very well in these roughly 60 days since we started, always with the desire to improve every day.”

What to expect from the final days of the transfer window “Internally, it is clear what we have to do, what we want to do and what we would like to do. We have to act according to our possibilities and according to what the market wants and demands. Several names have already come up for the number 9 position, but I will not comment on anything until it is practically a done deal for us. We have to make some moves, but I do not know whether it will be one, two or more than two. The next few days will be hectic for everyone.”

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