FABIO Silva has predicted he will have no difficulties dealing with the demands of Rangers fans in the second half of the season after handling high expectations following his £35m transfer from Porto to Wolves as a teenager in 2020.
Silva, who moved from Molineux to Ibrox on loan until the end of the season last month, netted his first goal for the Glasgow club in their 3-0 league win over Livingston at the weekend.
The 21-year-old is hoping to get on the scoresheet again tonight in the cinch Premiership match against Aberdeen in Govan and help the home team move level on points with leaders Celtic - and possibly even jump above their city rivals in the table.
Rangers fans are excited about the resurgence they have enjoyed since Philippe Clement took over as manager in October and are keen for the Viaplay Cup winners to lift the Premiership and Scottish Cup trophies in the coming months.
READ MORE: Rangers manager accuses some Scottish teams of being 'afraid' to play
Their Portuguese striker won a league and cup double in his homeland when he was starting out with Porto, joined Wolves for an eight figure fee and had spells at Anderlecht in Belgium and PSV Eindhoven in the Netherlands last season.
He is, then, confident that he can continue to perform at home and abroad in the coming weeks despite the intense pressure which will be on his shoulders to find the target.
“It is important to play with a smile,” he said. “This is why I tried to come here to Rangers, to feel happy again and to play football. I know myself better than anyone. I need to be happy, feel free and to feel the love from everyone around the club. When I’m happy, things on the pitch come naturally for me.
“You have to believe in yourself. I know my value and what I can do. When I have the chance to play, I always try to show what I can do. For sure, I am a different player and person now than when I moved to Wolves.
“Listen, people want to talk about the price, but that was the price Wolves wanted to pay. I didn’t put the pressure on me, I just tried to enjoy myself and be myself.
“But, of course, I am a different person now because that happens when you pass things in life. It happens when you have good moments or bad moments. Afterwards you just have to learn about yourself and spend some time alone thinking. That’s what makes you a better person, to become stronger to show your qualities.”
READ MORE: Philippe Clement eyeing solution for out-of-contract Rangers player
Silva continued: “If you are young with a lot of pressure on you then everyone expects a lot. They expect 30 goals in the Premier League and MVP (Most Valuable Player) in every match.
“But when you are young you need time to get to know the league. We are not speaking about a normal league, we are speaking about Premier League. It is difficult to play there as all the teams have the best players who plays for his national team.
“So you need some time to improve and sometimes people don’t give you that time. You then need to find the time in another place which I have tried go do. Last year it was in Belgium and Holland and this year here in Scotland. But I think if you look at last season and until now, when I have had chances, I can prove myself.
“I think it’s nice to have that pressure. You have to go into every game with the mindset to win. You cannot relax because you know the fans and the people around the club want you to win.
“When I was at Porto, it was the same. If we didn’t win the game the fans didn’t stay too happy. So I know this from before. Of course, we are going to try and win every games and the next one of the most important one for us, against Aberdeen.”
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