Thierry Correia hints to Rui Borges: would love to return to Sporting | OneFootball

Thierry Correia admitted that he would like to return to Sporting in the future. The 27-year-old Portuguese right-back is out of contract with Valencia and said in an interview with Flashscore that returning to Alvalade remains a personal and family goal.

“Of course, I’d like to play for Sporting again. It’s a dream of mine and of my family, who are all Sporting fans, also because of the years I spent at the Academy. I know it’s complicated, but it’s my dream,” said the player developed by the Lions, the club for which he made seven appearances for the first team between 2018 and 2019.

The defender also recalled his departure from Sporting in the January 2020 transfer window, when he moved to Valencia in a deal worth 12 million euros. “I was caught by surprise. We had just lost to Rio Ave [2-3] and I remember my parents saying there was a possibility I could leave. I immediately said I didn’t want to, it had been my dream since I was 9 years old. But my father challenged me by saying they had just signed Rosier and still had Ristovski. They were two players for just one position: 'They’re injured, but they’ll be back and you’re the easiest player to take out of the XI.' That was basically it, but the first time they mentioned Valencia, I said: 'I don’t care, I don’t want to leave.' But my father changed my perspective".

In the interview, Thierry Correia also spoke about Iván Fresneda, Sporting’s current right-back, and had praise for the Spaniard. “If you’re a player who gets a lot of attention, you’re always valued. If you’re a player who has a great game and then doesn’t maintain that level, you’re not valued as highly. I think Fresneda is an underrated player in Portugal and one of the top full-backs in the league,” said the Portugal youth international, also revealing that he remains in contact with Daniel Bragança and Francisco Trincão.

The last season ended up being marked by several physical problems, at a time when he was still recovering from a serious injury suffered earlier. “I was injured for 11 months, I didn’t do pre-season. Then I gradually got back into rhythm, felt more confident and without pain in my knee, something that hadn’t been happening in some matches and training sessions, but when I was starting to feel good I suffered a hamstring injury. This season I ultimately never felt physically comfortable, and in April I got injured against Mallorca. I turned to an outside physiotherapist to be available for the final matches, because I wanted to close this chapter by playing,” he explained.

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