Farioli on André Silva: “One of the quickest deals ever” | OneFootball

André Silva’s return to FC Porto is the main headline at the start of pre-season. Francesco Farioli said he was pleased with the way the Portuguese international striker reported back at Olival, highlighting not only his physical condition, but also his strong emotional bond with the club and how quickly he agreed to wear blue and white again after nine years away from Portugal.

“André Silva is truly motivated to come home. He was very motivated when I spoke to him, he was very happy and arrived in excellent shape. A few days ago, you saw a very beautiful bicycle-kick goal from him in training, so his attitude, his qualities and especially his connection with the reality of FC Porto are really strong. He really wanted to come back from the very first call. From my side, it was one of the fastest negotiations ever, because we spoke and, from the moment the call ended, it was really just a matter of a few numbers and bureaucracy, as always, but everything moved very quickly. He is very motivated and I think he will show it very soon on the pitch,” he said.

In addition to the attacking reinforcement, Farioli also made a point of praising the decisive contribution of the academy youngsters at this early stage, as they have helped maintain the demands of training while the international players return in phases.

“We had very good help from the young players who are with us in helping us keep the rhythm and intensity of the training sessions at a certain level. In terms of cognitive demands, they were really ready to cope with what we asked, thanks to the work of the B team, of coach João [Brandão], and also because of the work done here at Olival by André Castro and the physical performance staff who were with the youngsters to keep them fit. They are ready to make the most of this opportunity and to play minutes in the upcoming friendly matches.”

As for the gaps that still remain in the squad and FC Porto’s possible activity in the transfer market, the Italian coach made it clear that the internal assessment has already been done: “We are aware of the needs and our strategy is very clear. We know the positions where we need to strengthen and where we believe we have to take a step forward. We will see in the coming days what happens.”

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