The Brazilian midfielder of Fiorentina, currently on loan from Juventus, Arthur Melo, spoke with the Spanish media Relevo in the preview of the great final of the UEFA Conference League, a tournament that will define its new champion this Wednesday, May 29.
The player trained at Grêmio spoke about various topics related to his football rebirth at Fiorentina, his absence from the Copa América squad and the possibility of returning to Juve, but he also spoke about his turbulent and short stint at Barça, comparing his start with that of Vitor Roque, Brazilian star of Barça who has started his stage with the wrong foot:
“It’s normal that things don’t always go very well, but time is needed,” assured the midfielder.
READ MORE
++ The shirt that Grêmio gave Cristiano Ronaldo as a gift through his sister
++ Formiga, the tireless fighter and record breaker
++ Flamengo takes note: when was the last time a group second won the Libertadores?
Arthur Melo spoke about the difficulties that South Americans face in adapting to European football
In addition to being asked about his good present at Fiorentina, Arthur also spoke about a key factor that is sometimes forgotten when talking about big signings: the issue of the adaptation of young South Americans to the demands of European football.
“More than physically, it’s the style of play. You come out of South America and come to Europe, it seems like another sport. It doesn’t seem like football. The ball goes much faster, everything is more intense, there is a time to adapt to that style of play and it’s not easy. In South America, it’s a different game. It’s a normal thing (that it’s difficult to adapt), it’s not that after a month you’re going to be a starter, there’s a time, a process, you have to respect the times.”
The Brazilian said that his adaptation at Barça was surprisingly good and fast, but he understands that for many players this can be much more complicated. Arthur was asked if he sees similarities between his adaptation and the one Vitor Roque is having, responding the following:
“Yes, because he in Brazil played a year and a half as a professional, it’s very little. The same thing happened to me. I played for a year only and then went to Barcelona. I made 30-35 games and left, it’s very little. You don’t have the experience to play the way you were playing in Brazil, with your language, with your style of play… it’s normal that sometimes things don’t go very well, but time is needed.”
“It may happen that you arrive and play everything, what happened to me was not normal. The coaches told me so. I had to gradually gain experience, this is normal, you have to give him time to mature,” he concluded.
For Arthur, Vitor Roque only needs to continue working hard to fully adapt to the demands of Barça and now, with Hansi Flick in charge, his sporting situation could change completely in the Blaugrana squad for the next season.
Remembering Zagallo
Sambafoot Series launched a new documentary about the football legend Zagallo. Known as ‘Velho Lobo‘ and as superstitious as it gets, Zagallo helped shape what Brazilian football is nowadays — as a player and as a coach.
Watch the full series, available on Sambafoot’s Youtube channel.
