Partizan latest signing, Peruvian international Joao Grimaldo, made his debut cameo appearance for Partizan in a last weekend`s Partizan 2-0 win over Zeleznicar. We spoke to 21-year-old winger after the game.
“I feel really great and I can thank my teammates for it. They controlled the game and enabled me to enter the game comfortably. Coach Stanojevic and my teammates made me confident I can play my football game and I thank them all for that”, said Grimaldo.
After a long journey, you needed some time to adapt to new time zone and new conditions overall. How are you doing now?
“It`s better, although it was harder at the beginning due to obvious circumstances. I`m in the process of adapting and to be honest, I cannot wait to learn more about Belgrade and your customs. What I`ve seen so far is really beautiful”.
Fans on the stands greeted you nicely and we noticed a lot of messages on social media from your Peruvian fans. What are they writing to you?
“Yes, I get lots of messages from fans who send me greetings and congratulate me on my debut. People here are also incredibly cordial and I`m really thrilled about it”.
How do you like Partizan training centre?
“It`s really impressive and fully convenient – dining room, gyms, rooms, training pitches..As for the training sessions itself, they are intensive but I feel pleasant about it”.
Boss Stanojevic speaks Spanish and he spends some time with you analyzing things. How much it means to you to have coaching staff speaking your language?
“Communication with the coach is great and I understand his demands and what he wants from me on the pitch much more with each new day. It means a lot to me that he speaks Spanish and everyone in the coaching team is committed to help me out”.
We have very important UEFA Europa League tie against Lugano coming up. What are your expectations?
“It`s important match for all of us. We`ll face it with great responsibility and attitude to achieve our goal, to move forward to the next stage of Europa League”, said Joao Grimaldo.
