Star declares love for Sporting: Would like to stay for 10 years | OneFootball

Pote matched Pedro Barbosa's record of 53 assists wearing the Sporting jersey. Interviewed by the club's media, the current and former 'number 8' of the Lions shared a good moment, with the Portuguese international admitting his desire to stay at Alvalade.

"I know that Pedro Barbosa was here for 10 years. I would also like to stay here for 10 years. We’ll see how it goes. We have different personalities. He has a more mature, captain-like personality. I would like to have Pedro’s vision of the game, his movements, the way he passed the ball and where he wanted to pass it. He had a good shot, maybe not like mine, because I’ve scored more goals, but perhaps his was better. The goalkeepers didn’t expect it as much. And I would take that one-on-one ability, because Pedro Barbosa was excellent in one-on-ones," he said to the club's media.

Despite his great influence on Sporting's game, Pote admits that the goal is something else: "Of course, statistically we always like to score, to assist, to see our name there. But the most important thing for me is to feel happy, to play well, to know that I’m doing my best for the team, what the coach asks of me."

"That’s the message that I and the players who have been here longer try to pass on: any game can make the difference at the end of the championship and we have to keep that in mind, because our Champions League is winning the title. That’s why we have to give everything to win the three-peat. It could be a historic year for the Club and that’s what we’re going to try to do," he added.

For his part, Pedro Barbosa praised Pote, applauding the Portuguese international’s journey: "I’m a fan. I already was at Famalicão. There’s something poetic about the way he shoots. He’s not a player who shoots with power, he always shoots with finesse. It seems like the ball doesn’t have much force, but it goes to the right place. That shows his intelligence. In decisive moments, he often makes the best decision," he said.

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