Former club Buriram laud JDT new signing Santo’s professionalism
PETALING JAYA: Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT)’s prized catch Brazilian Diogo Santo is a true professional.
This was attested by his former club – Buriram United, who are the Thai League 1 champions.
The club hailed the JDT’s new signing as one of the best players they had worked with and said he had played a huge role in enhancing the standard of the Thai League.
Buriram United president Newin Chidchob said Santo approached him before the start of the 2018 season expressing his desire to leave at the end of the season if there was a better offer.
“Credit must be given to him because he gave us a year’s notice to prepare for his absence,” said Newin in a statement. “This just shows how professional he is.
“He remained dedicated and gave his best, even though we knew he was leaving.”
The Southern Tigers underlined their intention for the 2019 Super League season by signing the prolific Santo.
The 31-year-old has been Buriram’s goal-scoring machine with 132 goals and 45 assists in just 158 games spanning the last four seasons, which proved instrumental in the Thunder Castles’ three League 1 titles.
Santo said he was looking forward to his two-year contract with JDT.
“It’ll be a new challenge with JDT after serving the Thais for four years. I’m motivated and will bring in the same mentality – work hard and win,” he said.
Santo first caught the attention of JDT in 2017. Since then, they monitored his performances and were interested, but the cost was a factor for the club.
JDT sporting director Martin Prest believes Santo will be a good addition to the squad ahead of their maiden AFC Champions League campaign and their Super League title defence.
“He fits the style of football JDT want to play,” said Prest.
Santo’s signing completed the foreign player quota after JDT also signed Spanish midfielder Aaron Niguez and Argentine centreback Mauricio dos Santos Nascimento. Captain Hariss Harun and Gonzalo Cabrera remained from last season to complete the foreign line-up.