Fabio Tavares can’t wait to showcase his talents in and around box for Coventry City.
The quick and skilful striker might have to be patient to get his chance in the Sky Blues first team, having initially joined as a development squad player.
But with 39 senior appearances, including 26 in League One to his name for Rochdale, the 20-year-old will no doubt be looking to fast track his way into Mark Robins’s Championship plans.
Asked what type of striker he is, Tavares, who has joined for an undisclosed fee on a two-and-a-half year contract, said: “I like to get in behind and play off the shoulder using my speed.
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“And I want to get goals really, that’s what I live for.
“I’m always in the box and I’m always alert and I have a few skills here and there.”
As for how the deadline day deal came about, the Portuguese player explained: “My agent rang me and told me there was an opportunity to come and play for a massive club like Coventry and I knew then straight away that I had to take it and I couldn’t say no.
“It’s a new blessing and a new chapter for me, I’m excited and I can’t wait to get going and I’m just so thankful for this opportunity.”
Speaking to the club’s website, he added: “We played against Coventry last year and they had a great team and obviously they got promoted by winning the league, so I knew coming here and working with the coaching staff that I couldn’t say no and I knew it was the next step and the right step for me.
“It’s a new opportunity for me and it’s good to come here. In the past the club have had some good young players that have gone on to have wonderful careers and I think this is the right place for me.”
Having come up through the youth ranks at Dale and broken into the first team, Tavares appreciates everything the club have done for him.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity that Rochdale gave me,” he said.
“They helped me develop as a player and a person and they really gave me my chance in football.
“This season I’ve got some games under my belt and I’m just looking forward to getting some more in the Championship.
“I think I’ve outdone my expectations, maybe not so much this year, but last year at 18 I played a lot of games and scored my first professional goal and got my first professional start.”
