Porto midfielder Sergio Oliveira is Roma's most important signing for this winter window so far.
Three days after the arrival of new signing Oliveira, Roma held a press conference for the midfielder at Trigolia's training base.
Roma hopes that Oliveira will use his strength and personality to strengthen the midfield of the Mourinho team and improve the strength of Roma.
In the 22nd round of Serie A, Roma will play Cagliari at home. New signing Oliveira will make his debut for Roma in this match.
The club's sporting director, Thiago Pinto, was one of the top brass of the Portuguese Premier League Benfica. In the Portuguese Premier League, Porto are one of Benfica's long-standing rivals.
Thiago Pinto, who introduced him to his latest signing, said: "Two years ago neither of us ever thought we could be together. I'm glad he's here today, we've been opponents many times in the past. There is no need to introduce Sergio, whose international status is well known. I'm very happy to have a good midfielder and he's very eager to come to Roma.
At the press conference, the reporters asked Oliveira a lot of questions, and the players answered them one by one.
Both Roma and coach Jose Mourinho want the team to add more personality, and the arrival of Oliveira is a change made by Roma.
So, can the 29-year-old Oliveira help this Roma team have a winning mentality?
New signing Oliveira said in response to the question: I will learn Italian, but today I will speak Portuguese to answer the question. I'm 29 years old and I've proven my worth in football. I have reached the age of maturity and I feel a responsibility to help roma. As for character, coaches want to have important players. Roma already have a lot of people in this area and I feel like I'm just another person to help the team grow and achieve its goals.
At Porto, Oliveira's performance on set-pieces has been very calm, especially on penalties. This season, Roma have been weak in the set-pieces, and the reporter asked Oliveira whether he would become roma's set-piece taker.
To this, Oliveira replied: I often play in this position, but it is the coach's decision. Roma have good players like Villette and Pellegrini, both of whom are excellent set-piece experts. But it's clear that everyone makes mistakes. Penalties mean taking on a lot of responsibility.
This season, Oliveira has played less time in Porto and has not performed as well as last season. Last season, Oliveira scored 20 goals and seven assists for Porto. This season, he has only scored five goals for the team.
The reporter wanted to understand why. Moreover, Oliveira came to Roma on loan. The reporter is also curious about whether the player can stay in Roma after the loan period. There are reports that Oliveira hopes to join Roma in the summer of 2021.
The Portuguese team replied: "I am a player who loves to challenge. I'm thankful that Porto has allowed me to grow a lot and take me to the current level. We've worked together for five years and last season was the best for me, both collectively and individually. I want to take on new challenges and I don't worry about coming here on loan. I'm here to prove my worth in training and competition. I want to show my prowess and then stay here for a long time, and the best way to do that is to start winning.
After joining Roma, Oliveira chose the Number 27 player. The reporter asked why he chose this number, and the player himself said that it was the number he had been using, so he felt comfortable with this number.
As for where he can play on the pitch, Oliveira defines himself as a B2B midfielder.
Oliveira said his favourite position is in the front three-man midfield position, also able to play as a defensive midfielder in front of the backline. Oliveira also said: "I can play where the coach wants and where he needs to, where I can show my strength and help the team.
The new signing also revealed that thanks to the addition of Pinto and Mourinho, he has been following Roma from that moment on. Oliveira also said he had developed a good relationship with team captain Pellegrini.
Oliveira has been in Rome for three days, and the reporter asked him what impression he had of the Roma team. Oliveira said: "I was surprised by the strength of the team. The infrastructure is very good. I was welcomed by all of them and I thank them. I've been following Rome for a while now and have learned a little bit about it from the outside. Over time, I'll feel more comfortable and things will get better.
In addition to this, Oliveira also said that he wanted to return to the Portuguese national team, and the team manager Mourinho knew this. The players hope that the Portuguese national team will be able to participate in the World Cup at the end of this year.
At Oliveira's press conference, the player showed his mature side and hoped that the player's addition would improve Roma's results.