Zenit St Petersburg striker Hulk has reflected on how he almost signed for Atletico Madrid going on five years ago.
The striker signed for Porto in 2008 for an initial fee of €5m for 50 per cent of his rights, before then joining Russians Zenit last summer at a cost of €60m.
However, that mark-up could have been to Atleti’s favour, instead of Porto’s, as the 26-year-old reflected today.
“I was on the verge of signing for Atletico in 2008,” Hulk, who is seen as angling for a move again this coming summer, told the Gazzetta dello Sport today.
“Atletico and I looked for an agreement, but in came Porto and I preferred Portugal for the language.
“I had spent years in Japan and Brazil, I knew that I would adapt easier in Portugal.”
