Q. Paulo, for those laymen, for those who don't understand how big a deal this is, can you explain how big a deal this is to land Hector?
PAULO NAGAMURA: Absolutely. Just to see his resume and where he played in the last ten years, a player that has been playing in Champions League and top clubs in Europe. He's been the captain for the Mexican National Team. So his resume, I think, it stands by itself. It's a huge sign for the club.
And transpires well. We've been talking the past year, the past few weeks that we want to change the culture of this club, and getting high caliber players is definitely one of those things that we want to do.
Q. How much does this -- kind of an obvious question. How much does this boost your opportunity to do some real damage in the MLS this year?
PAULO NAGAMURA: I wouldn't say damage. I would say that we will definitely get stronger with a player like that. At the end, that's what we want to be. We want to be a stronger team. We want to be that hopefully makes the playoffs at the end of the year. So that definitely boosts our chances and make us stronger.
Let's don't forget that he only join us in summer, so he's still a player from Atletico as of now, and we have to respect that. Yeah, we're really, really excited to have him join in summer.
Q. I'm not sure if you were, I guess, part of conversations with Hector, or what did you say to Hector during this process, or I guess even after this process about why Houston was the right move for him and kind of how he'll fit under your tactics and game plan?
PAULO NAGAMURA: Absolutely, I had the pleasure to talk to Hector a couple of weeks ago. We talked about life. We talked about soccer. We describe what kind of project we have here in Houston, and we were really, really transparent the way that he would fit into the project.
So I think the message was clear, and I think that's one of the reasons why we were able to accomplish this is because we were very transparent. He saw it as one opportunity to be a big part of this project.
Q. My question is a little bit of follow-up on what Tom asked. If I look at the game against Salt Lake, you guys had a lot of the ball, dominated possession over 60 percent of the time. Obviously, Hector is very good in that sort of system. I think with the right players he can play in transition as well. Can you perhaps expand on how you believe he will fit, not just in the short term, but perhaps long term, as the project evolves?
PAULO NAGAMURA: Absolutely. I think you say right. I think we had possession in the game against Salt Lake, and we transformed that possession into goal scoring opportunities. I think Hector, the way that he plays, he has that creativity. He has the final pass or final touch that can make us a little more creative in the final third.
So absolutely, I think he's going to have a huge impact when he comes in. In the meantime, we have to be better on that part until he gets here.
Q. Perhaps beyond this season, is he a player that you believe the club can build around?
PAULO NAGAMURA: Absolutely. Absolutely. I think we can. He's a top player. He really fits the way that I see the game, and we want to implement -- the tools that we want to implement here. Definitely for sure, I can say that he can be a player that we can work around for sure.
Q. Something that you preached a lot during your time here is that you want competition among everybody. Who will Hector be competing for playing time with when it comes to the midfield players that you currently have?
PAULO NAGAMURA: Well, Hector doesn't get here until the summer. So let's see first when he gets here, like I said, we must respect that he's under contract with Atletico until the end of the European season. But, yes, he's a top player, and we hope that he comes in and has a huge impact in the field.
Competition is always good. It doesn't matter if it's a Champions League player, if it's a college player, if it's a youth player. Competition is always going to bring benefit to the team, and it's not going to be different. We have to be patient. He doesn't get here until the summer, so we can't get ahead of ourselves. Let's see I can answer that question when he gets in town.
Q. I just wanted to ask, when players come in from international teams and they've had the career that they've had, they tend to be treated differently. How comfortable are you in dealing with a player of his caliber? And how well do you feel like he'll fit into this locker room considering his profile?
PAULO NAGAMURA: What I can say is that I had a conversation with Hector on the phone, and I don't think he's the kind of guy that we need to treat him differently. I think he's very humble and very, very -- he has an unbelievable mentality and work ethic. He has shown that for the past ten years or so playing in top clubs in Europe, and I think that will not be an issue that we're going to have with Hector.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports