Luuk de Jong: Big battle ahead this season, but we're on track | OneFootball

FC Porto forward, Luuk de Jong, was honored by PSV. Accompanied by his children Dozy and Finn, he inaugurated the press room, received a bronze captain's armband, and was welcomed to his former home in Eindhoven as a true hero.

The striker, who at 35 years old moved to Portugal to represent FC Porto – with a contract until June and an additional option – spoke about this new chapter and was unequivocal when asked about a possible return to PSV.

“That chapter is closed. I really enjoyed the moment, this farewell. I would love to do something at this club in the future, if possible. I don't know, but the possibility exists. I had wonderful moments at PSV and I think I ended very well. Fortunately, with the achievement of a championship at the end, which was incredibly special because of how it happened. It was a great way to leave PSV. I am in the last phase of my career elsewhere, in a beautiful city, in a beautiful region, where we play for titles. It's a great place to be and I chose adventure because I love it,” he stated to the Dutch media after the tribute he received at the 'Phillips Stadium'.

He also assured that he did not feel pressure to leave the club: “I always felt there was a place for me here, they always gave me that idea and, in theory, it could have happened. We talked frequently. But when FC Porto came, I made the choice and thought: “this is something I really want,” to play in a top team that wins trophies,” he said, before talking about Francesco Farioli, who last season was the coach of rival Ajax.

“When he was at Ajax, I noticed he was very focused on analyzing the opponent. He developed tactics against PSV and Feyenoord and was successful. He beat us twice and defeated Feyenoord twice as well. You can see he is very focused on this tactical aspect. On how the opponent plays. (…) “He looks at the type of team he has in front of him and thinks about what he can do. Seeking pressure, having a lot of offensive play, trying to dominate and recover the ball quickly. We are doing very well in that. We have two great rivals in Benfica and Sporting and it will be a great battle this season, but we are on the right track,” he said, also addressing the fact that Farioli has all the players at his disposal. “In football, this is becoming increasingly important: rotation, using all the squad members.”

Regarding Farioli's loss of the title in the final rounds, he declared: “I hope we can all laugh together in the end. He himself admitted that he was terribly disappointed with what happened last season. I was at PSV…. “But we are doing things well and, therefore, I am very confident.”

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