Samu unfazed by André Silva, Gimenez: “I’ll learn and improve” | OneFootball

Almost eight months after suffering a ligament tear in his right knee, Samu returned to the pitch in the clásico between FC Porto and Benfica at the Estádio do Dragão. In an interview with the Spanish newspaper Marca, the striker spoke about the competition from André Silva and Santiago Gimenez, Francesco Farioli’s trust, and the demands of representing the Dragons. Unafraid of the battle for a place, he assured: “The most important thing is to help the team.”

His return to competition opened a new chapter for Samu Aghehowa, who now faces different internal competition from the one he found before the injury. At 22, the Spanish forward sees that challenge as an opportunity for growth, without losing sight of the collective strength he identifies at FC Porto.

On the fight for a place in attack, Samu dismissed any idea of discomfort. On the contrary, he highlighted the quality and experience of André Silva and Santiago Gimenez, leaving the final decision in the coach’s hands.

“Our squad is very complete and that demands a lot from the three of us in training and in matches. I’m very happy to have André Silva and Santiago Gimenez on the team. We learn a lot from each other,” he said. “I’m the youngest of the three, I have a lot to learn from them, and that will make me a better player. The competition demands much more from us on a daily basis and, in the end, the coach decides who plays. The most important thing is to help the team.”

The message is not one of confrontation, but of growth. Samu accepts the competition as part of the daily demands and turns it into motivation to come back stronger.

That willingness to put the collective above individual ambitions also extends to the way he views the dressing room. For the Spaniard, unity is the main secret of a group that sees itself as a family.

“Our secret is being a team. That’s what I like most about this group. We are a family and we fight for one another. Everything is going well. Last year was incredible. We won the league again three years later,” he stressed. “With the arrival of coach Farioli, we started breathing a different air, and the truth is that this year we also started well, winning every game in the domestic competitions. We are very happy, but we know this is only the beginning of a very long journey. We have to keep our feet firmly on the ground and understand that our limit is ourselves. Our ambition is to win every game, even if they are friendlies. That is what makes this club great. We are very happy and confident about the future.”

His words combine confidence and caution: there is satisfaction with the path taken, but also the awareness that nothing has been achieved yet. For Samu, ambition comes precisely from that balance between the strength of the group and the obligation to keep winning.

The long recovery process brought difficult days and also cost him a place at the 2026 World Cup. Between thanking the staff, his teammates and his family, the forward saved special words for Francesco Farioli, FC Porto’s current coach.

“I owe everything to coach Farioli. He always trusted me, from day one, but since the injury he has trusted me even more. He gave me a lot of confidence, encouraged me and helped me with everything I needed. All of that was very important to me,” he explained. “I didn’t know if he would still count on me after the injury, but he gave me that vote of confidence, told me he was counting on me, and showed me how important I am to him. I feel very grateful. Not every coach acts like that.”

More than technical support, Samu found in his coach a crucial sense of security during the uncertainty caused by the injury. In his account, Farioli’s trust appears as one of the emotional pillars of his return.

Happy at FC Porto and with the ambition of returning to the Spanish national team, the forward does not hide the extent of the pressure he feels in the city. The pressure exists, but it is understood as part of the responsibility of defending the Porto badge.

“When the fans meet me in the street, the first thing they tell me is that I have to win. That’s the atmosphere here,” he said. “We feel a lot of pressure, but it is positive pressure, because we have to honor this badge. We only think about winning. The fans’ support is very important, because without them it would be much more difficult.”

The relationship with the fans adds weight, but also momentum. Samu accepts that pressure as an expression of the competitive culture of a club he described as “a top club on a global level.”

It was precisely in front of the fans, in the clásico against Benfica, that the Spaniard returned to action. The moment had not initially been planned, but his progress in the previous weeks and medical clearance allowed his comeback to be brought forward.

“It was a very long road, but thank God it has come to an end. In the end, everything went well. Returning in such an important game for the Club, for the city and for the whole team was very special. I will never forget the way the fans welcomed me. We managed to win the game and in the end everything went well. It was everything I dreamed of,” he recalled. “It was indescribable. The way the fans welcomed me was incredible and I will never forget it. It wasn’t planned for me to return in that game. It was a very happy moment for me and my family. We had to manage the injury step by step. I thought I would only return after the international break, but I started to feel good in the previous weeks and the doctors gave me the all-clear. It went even better than I expected.”

After a step-by-step recovery, his return to the pitch took on a meaning that went beyond sport. Samu came back on a special stage, felt the support from the stands, and found in the clásico the ending he had imagined for a long wait.

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