Hulk: I had chances to move to the Premier League every year during four years at Porto, but the club did not want to sell me

Brazilian forward Hulk appeared on Romario's program for a lengthy conversation with Romario. During the interview, Hulk looked back on his experiences playing in Japan, Porto, Zenit, China and Atletico Mineiro. This is the first part of the interview.

Brother, it is great to have you on our program. Let me ask you first, you left Brazil for Japan at a very young age to play football. How was it adapting at that time?

For me, it was indeed something that worried me a lot. My professional career had only just started, and I could not even speak Portuguese very well, yet I was going to Japan. But after arriving there, I actually had a very positive feeling. That country gave me everything I needed, and I adapted quickly. For me at that time, that experience was very good.

Was Japanese football more like European football or more like Brazilian football?

I think Brazilian football now already has a very high technical level. It was not like that before. In the past, there was more space in our games, so there were many transitions between attack and defense. When I first arrived in Japan, their matches also had many transitions. So compared with European football, there were still some differences.

Did your experience in Japan help you deal better with the pressure of going to Europe? When you actually arrived in Europe, were you already more relaxed and composed?

I think when we arrive in Europe, we are actually relatively calm. I think it is different from our own country, where playing in Brazil brings greater pressure. Especially when you go to Europe at a young age, I often say that once you arrive there, you receive full support from the coaching staff, and they help you adapt. I joined Porto in 2008, and the head coach at the time was Ferreira. He really helped me a lot and made many things much easier for me.

You won 11 trophies in five years at Porto. In your view, was that the best period of your career?

I think even if it was not the best period, it was definitely one of the best periods. We won the Europa League and won the Portuguese league title unbeaten. I was also called up to the Brazil national team for the first time in 2009. So it was a very special period. I think it may indeed have been one of the best stages of my career.

You must have worked with many Portuguese coaches. Nowadays, many Portuguese coaches have entered our football, especially Brazilian football. Mourinho is also one of the most famous among them. Do you think Portuguese coaches have something different from our coaches?

I do not think so. I think everyone has their own way of reading the game, as well as different coaching philosophies and schools of thought. I think it is more related to the era they are in.

There was a period when Brazilian coaches were very popular. Luxemburgo coached Real Madrid, and Scolari was also a highly respected coach who managed Chelsea and worked in many places around the world. After Argentina won the World Cup, many Argentine coaches also began to stand out.

Now, I think Portuguese coaches are indeed very prominent, especially in Brazilian football. I think this is related to the results they have achieved. For example, Abel came here and won important titles. And the coach who currently manages Cruzeiro, previously managed Botafogo and won the Copa Libertadores, I cannot remember his name right now.

Artur Jorge.

Jorge, yes, Artur Jorge. These achievements give Portuguese coaches credibility and increase their value. I think this is a period when Portuguese coaches are being highly valued in Brazilian football.

They are certainly very sought after now.

Yes, very sought after. Very sought after, truly very sought after.

After Mourinho went to coach in England, did he consider taking you with him? Why did it not happen in the end?

I spent four years at Porto, and almost every transfer window there was a possibility of moving to England, but Porto always kept me. They did not want to sell me, they simply did not want to sell me. In the 2010/11 season, we won the Europa League and the Portuguese league title unbeaten, almost winning everything. That year was truly incredible.

After that, Porto sold Falcao to Atletico Madrid, and immediately received an offer from Manchester City for me. If they were to sell me at that time, the offer was 60 million euros. I only learned that later.

But Porto said they would not sell me. They would not sell because they had just sold Falcao and did not need to raise more funds by selling another player.

The following year, I remember Villas-Boas went... was it from Chelsea to Tottenham, or did he go to Chelsea?

Chelsea.

Yes, Chelsea. He wanted to take Joao Moutinho and James Rodriguez, if I remember correctly.

No, it was Joao Moutinho and Alvaro Pereira.

Yes, I think that is right. Anyway, in the end he failed to sign them. After that, the European transfer window closed. At that time, I was the only player who received an offer from Russian football. The European window had closed, but Russia seemed to have about one week left.

I received an offer from Zenit. I seriously considered it because at that time I had already agreed a contract extension with Porto, and I also knew that the club had rejected an offer for me to go to England the previous year.

So I thought: 'Brother, I think now is the time to leave.' I could still play in the Champions League and go to a completely different league. Of course, I originally did have an opportunity to play in England.

When you went to Russia, was that market attractive in every aspect at the time? Not only economically. Was Russian football also beginning to receive more attention in Europe?

I think so. Because they invested a lot of money at that time. For example, they signed Belgian player Witsel and many other well-known players. Eto'o also went to Russia, so there were indeed many big-name players moving there.

At the same time, we could also play in the Champions League, and Zenit was a very strong team at the time. So these factors played a major role, not just the economic aspect.

Did you experience racism in Russia? How did you deal with that situation at the time?

It was very difficult, truly very difficult. Because when I first arrived in Russia, some jealousy began to appear in the dressing room. Russian local players had some resistance to our arrival because of my and Witsel's salaries and our transfer fees.

So this started to create an uncomfortable atmosphere in the dressing room. I even asked to leave, but the chairman would not let me go.

In some matches, opposing fans also targeted me and sang songs with racist meaning. That period was truly difficult, and I suffered a lot. Later, I prayed to God, hoping he would give me enough judgment to know how to face the situation.

Later, something happened that even surprised me. Once I went to take a corner kick, and the fans started doing that again. For some reason, I suddenly began blowing kisses toward the stands and smiling there.

Did something like that happen later in other places? Or after experiencing those racist incidents in Russia, did it never happen again? In other words, was it mainly during that period in Russia?

That incident in Russia was the last time. I also experienced one in Portugal, but I did not even hear it myself at the time; I only found out later after seeing the video. It seemed to be in the match where I scored. But after leaving Russia, it never happened again.