Vitinha is fine, thank you for him.
Despite the substantial amount of his transfer, €40m, the young (22) Portuguese international midfielder (4 selection) arrived in Paris in a certain anonymity, in the form of a question mark.
It must be said that he had only one season on loan at Wolverhampton and another within his training club Porto in the legs before landing.
In any case, the French public discovered it.
Not the Portuguese football adviser to PSG Luis Campos, nor the Parisian coach Christophe Galtier, who had targeted this player "
very often on the move, very fair technically and in movement, and who has this ability to break the lines with the ball at his foot
" , as explained by the second named.
Well seen.
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It was still necessary that "Viti" is based in the collective, adapts to its new environment, digests the change of gear between Porto and Paris.
Arrived first in the transfer window, even before the signing of Galtier, he was quick to invite himself into the starting lineup while waiting for Paris to change in the middle, with many departures (Gueye, Wijnaldum, Paredes, Herrera , Dina Ebimbe) and several arrivals (Ruiz, Renato, Soler).
He never got out.
We were all impressed because he adapted very quickly to our game.
Marquinhos
An express adaptation that impresses his coach and his teammates.
"
He quickly took his bearings
," slips Galtier.
“
We were all impressed because he adapted very quickly to our game. He is a very intelligent player, very athletic, who perfectly complements the players we already had and brings what we sometimes lacked.
With this intelligence, he manages to cover the spaces.
Everyone appreciates it.
It's wonderful to see a player integrate so quickly.
It shows its quality, its value.
It's not easy to arrive in a team like that, with great players and to win right away.
He succeeded and we are very happy for him
, ”savors Marquinhos.
Read alsoPSG: Mbappé, like a discomfort
His midfield partner, Marco Verratti, also fell under the spell of this "
very great player despite his young age
", praising his "
intelligence
" and his "
personality
".
Speaking of age, Vitinha is on the same line as the "
phenomenon
" Kylian Mbappé.
“
We should perhaps talk less about age and give young players, new players a chance.
If you perform, you deserve to play.
It's as simple as that.
That's what I try to do.
I took the opportunities that were given to me.
The secret ?
It's work, believing in my abilities
“, notes the person concerned, one of the four Portuguese in the workforce with Danilo Pereira, Renato Sanches and Nuno Mendes, before facing Benfica this Tuesday (9 p.m.), during the fourth day of C1, acknowledging that he “
Started the season very well.
It's the work that pays, as well as the fruit of the support of the staff to integrate me.
I can continue like this and improve myself
”.
Verratti/Vitinha, winning ticket
One thing is certain: the Verratti / Vitinha association works, even if for a time we doubted their ability to exist physically in the Champions League.
We will still have to wait for the big European posters in the spring to be completely sure, even if Galtier has already said he is "
satisfied
" with the Italian-Portuguese team, "
players with a lot of activity and volume, but also very good footballers.
It is very important, for the game that I want to develop, to have good midfielders in the heart of the game
”.
“
It is something that is often put forward, already before Juventus and other important matches
, underlines the colt of the stable Jorge Mendes.
.
I don't think we are fragile.
If you have the qualities and the intelligence, the physical side doesn't matter.
»
It's very easy to play with Marco Verratti.
Vitinha
Obviously, this two-man environment is not tenable if the team block is stretched, as we recently saw in Haifa for example, when Vitinha and Verratti took "
wave after wave
".
In short, teamwork.
In the meantime, it's la dolce vita between the two thieves, players “
fairly similar in the game
” but who “
complement each other
”, according to “Viti”, affirming that “
it's very easy to play with Marco Verratti.
It's a pleasure and a privilege to play with him, I have a lot to learn from him.
And he's a very good person too.
“
We are not very different.
He throws himself a lot, plays without the ball and creates space for others
“, notes meanwhile the “Little Owl”, who did not fail to chamber his teammate at the start of the season, when he had just committed three games in a row with a warning at the very start of the season.
"
He took my place
," smiled the Italian, who has since caught up in this area and could be heavily sanctioned after his anger in Reims (0-0).
Read also“We train all week to get…”: Verratti gets carried away at half-time at Reims-PSG (video)
In the meantime, the duo will be good for service against Benfica, six days after the draw in Lisbon (1-1).
“
It was not the result we were hoping for.
We played well against a very good team, in a very good dynamic.
It's hard to say what was missing.
In any case, I expect a Benfica team that will be like in Lisbon.
They will keep their identity, with a lot of pressure.
It is a team against which it is difficult to play but we are ready.
We prepared to respond better and we want to win
,” swears Vitinha.
The Parc des Princes expects no less.
In the event of a victory, combined with a defeat for Juve, Paris-SG would already be in the 8th.
