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The National (Scotland)
The National (Scotland)
Sport
Ewan Paton

Fabio Silva issues Rangers 'best team' in Scotland Celtic dig

Fabio Silva insists he's always viewed Rangers as the best team in Scotland.

The 21-year-old will officially join the Ibrox club on loan from Wolverhampton Wanderers on January 1 having agreed to a loan deal until the end of the season.

The Portuguese attacker was linked with moves to several clubs ahead of the January transfer window, including to both Rangers and Celtic

However, the former Porto forward is adamant that as soon as he learned of the interest from Philippe Clement, there was only one destination he wanted to arrive at.

"I'm very happy," Silva told Rangers TV. "When I spoke to people about Glasgow and the club, everyone told me good things about the club and its history. I've played here once for Porto against Rangers in the Europa League, so I already know it's a warm club and the environment of the stadium, so everything is perfect. 

"I'm very happy to be here. I want to start training with the team and to see the coaches and my teammates.

"It was amazing in the beginning. Everyone knows I had other options and other clubs, but when I saw the option to come on loan to Rangers I was very happy and it was my first option straight away. 

"As a player I want to win titles, to play for big clubs, feel the pressure and play in big competitions.

"When I was a kid and we spoke about Scotland, Rangers for me was the best team here. I want to play for the fans, with my teammates and to win titles. That's the most important thing."

Silva - who will wear the number seven jersey at Rangers - has experience of playing at Ibrox with Porto in 2019. It was not an evening to remember for the then teenager, as Alfredo Morelos scored to give the Scottish giants a huge victory under Steven Gerrard.

Playing in the Europa League was a huge attraction for Silva, who has struggled at Wolves since joining the Premier League club in 2020 for a club-record fee of £35m. So, it shows the importance of Rangers qualifying for the last 16 this term.

Asked for his memories of playing at Ibrox, the player said: "It was not so good for Porto at the time because I remember we lost that game. I was on the bench but it was amazing because the atmosphere was crazy. 

"The fans pushed the team to score, to attack, so I felt the energy from Rangers. I'm like this too, I like to feel the energy from the fans.

"They can expect a player with a lot of energy. I like to run, to fight for the team and like all quality players I like to score some goals. I like assists too - the most important thing is the team. If the team is okay, then the individual can match that. I'm happy to help with the team's performance and after that, goals and assists will come naturally.

"I started very early. I was 17 when I was in Porto's first team. Like you say, it's given me a lot of experience to be able to play in the Premier League and in Holland, Belgium and Portugal. 

"I've had a lot of teams for 21 years old. For me it's good because I want to come to this historic club, to win titles because that's the most important thing and to play in the Europa League which is a good competition.

"The Europa League has some of the best games you could play, so I don't think you need to have ambition to play in those kind of matches. It's natural. 

"We can do a lot of good things here. I've seen a lot of the games the team has played with the new coach, the players have played with freedom and happiness. I want to play with them. I see the pleasure they have on the ball and together. I like to play with these kind of teams. "

This will be Silva's third loan away from Molleniux. Last season he spent his time at Anderlecht and PSV.

He's determined to get back to playing with a smile on his face after some difficult challenges faced down south.

"Everyone knows that my time at Wolves has not been easy for me personally," he added. "I wanted to play more, to be more important there but it didn't happen because of choices. 

"The most important thing is to be playing football and feel happy. I'm 21, I want to feel free and to play. This is why I went to Belgium, to play, to score some goals and get assists. Things went well there, so I went to Holland and things went well there too as I helped the team win the cup. I played and I scored, so last season was amazing to get the feeling of confidence back in myself. 

"The first half of this season things haven't gone my way again at Wolves. But now, with the opportunity of this club, everyone wanted me here and I want to be here too.

"Of course, it's a positive environment. In football, things can happen. You expect one thing, and then another thing changes. 

"For me, I always try to work hard for myself to be better every day. My focus is here, to help Rangers win some good things and I'm very excited to train and play with my teammates. 

"Sometimes it's not easy. For example, last season I went to PSV on the last day of January, so it was a little bit different. 

"This time I pushed to be here as quickly as possible because I think it's important to see the tactics, to understand better the dynamics of the team, what the coach wants from me, what I want from my relationship with my teammates. 

"I know we're going to Spain soon to work a bit more with the coach. I pushed with my agent to get things done as quickly as possible."

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