West Ham Loanee João Mário Hints at Long Term Hammers Future After Impressing in Recent Games

West Ham midfielder João Mário has spoken highly of his time at West Ham United so far and has made it clear that he wants to do well at the club.

It remains to be seen whether Mário's loan deal will become permanent in the summer, but the Portugal star told whufc.com that he 'will give everything' regardless.

Catherine Ivill/GettyImages

“I will try to do my best. It’s important for me to show my quality in a West Ham shirt. I am glad to be here and I will give everything.

“I have played in two Premier League games now, with different results, and I can see right away that the game is really fast and physical.

“The intensity of the English game is high and that’s good for me because it will add things to my game that I don’t have yet. I’m happy to be playing at this level and will try to improve myself every time I go onto the pitch.”

Carlos Rodrigues/GettyImages

During his interview, Mário also talked about his progression as a young player and highlighted the similarities between West Ham and his former club, Sporting Lisbon.

“Like West Ham, Sporting is a club which forms a lot of future stars for our national team, both today and in the past," he said. "It’s really hard to reach the first team there, but I worked hard and I made it.

“They give you every chance to prove your talent, so it’s a really good club for young boys. Sporting have the eye to find the right players, then they have good coaches there who have the right mentality and vision for the young players, which is the most important thing.

“When I was a kid, I guess Cristiano was my hero, as the year I joined Sporting was the year he moved to Manchester United, so his pictures were all around our Academy. He is my number one reference and now playing alongside him in the national team is amazing.”