Bayern Munich Sporting CEO has moved to calm concerns about Joao Palhinha amid a slow start to life at the club following his move from Fulham.
Frankfurter Rundschau cover comments from the sporting director today after Palhinha moved to assure fans earlier this week.
The Portuguese midfielder joined the German giants in a big move from Fulham this summer, after more than a year of speculation about his future.
He had been close to the same move last summer but saw the deal cancelled on the final day of the window when Fulham couldn’t find a replacement.
Palhinha insisted in comments this week that was perfectly fine, and he was simply delighted to be at Bayern, making it clear there were no early problems as far as he’s concerned.
And now it seems Eberl wants to double down on that message, insisting it won’t be long before Palhinha is a first-team star.
“He’s now taken his step,” he said.
“Joao comes from the Premier League, a different league. This should be taken into account. He needed time to get used to everything – to how Vinnie wanted to play. New club, new city, new language, coach, team – everything is new. It just takes time.
“We defend very high, man to man. So, if the opponent plays a long ball and it’s a one-on-one duel, you need a number 6 who thinks defensively, switches immediately and helps the defender – and that’s Joao.”
