Rodrigo Mora reacts to under-21 call-up: “Proud” | OneFootball

Rodrigo Mora made a big splash at the start of the qualifying campaign for the European Under-21 Championship. The FC Porto forward paved the way for a resounding victory over Azerbaijan (5-0) in Barcelos, and expressed his "pride" in wearing the Portuguese jersey again, having previously played for the senior national team.

“Proud to wear my country's jersey again and very happy to contribute to an important victory on the road to the European Championship. Thank you for the great support today,” Rodrigo Mora wrote on social media.

Although he didn't play, he was part of the group that won the Nations League in June and returned to the under-21s to support the new coach, Luís Freire, at the start of the cycle with a resounding victory.

On the other hand, Roberto Martínez emphasized that the FC Porto player's return to the younger team should not be interpreted as a "demotion", underlining the plan set out for his development.

“Rodrigo Mora is in a normal phase. It happens in football: difficult times, good times. The important thing is to continue with attitude and improve every day. Rodrigo Mora's talent is exceptional. I love his talent, which is permanent. Rodrigo Mora was on the team that won the Nations League, but coach Luís Freire will talk about the importance of Rodrigo Mora being in the under-21s. It's not a demotion. It's an opportunity to continue his training process,” explained the national coach, when the A team was called up for the World Cup 2026 qualifying matches.

🔗 Instagram

New scenario at FC Porto

At the same time as he regains prominence in the under-21 national team, Rodrigo Mora will have to convince Francesco Farioli to give him more minutes at FC Porto.

After being a choice of Vítor Bruno and becoming essential for Martín Anselmi, the young 18-year-old forward saw his status change with the arrival of the Italian coach.

During the summer transfer window, he was close to moving to Saudi Arabia: Al Ittihad attempted to sign him, but did not meet the demands of the structure led by André Villas-Boas, who wanted the 70 million euro termination clause.

Rodrigo Mora ended up staying in the squad and responded positively in FC Porto's last game, a 2-1 victory over Sporting in Alvalade. With Pepê and Gabri Veiga sidelined by injury, Farioli brought on the young player trained at Olival, who stood out with several notable actions in the first half of the Clássico.

It remains to be seen whether the return of the recovered players will once again reduce Rodrigo Mora's space at FC Porto or if the striker has definitively convinced the 36-year-old Italian coach.

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