Video: Richard Ríos: Al-Ittihad is the people's club and I will give my life for it

The Colombian midfielder recently joined the Tigers.

Colombian midfielder Richard Rios, Al-Ittihad's new signing, has sent an emotional message to the club's supporters, vowing to sacrifice his life for the team.

Rios joined Al-Ittihad this summer, arriving from Benfica on a one-season loan. The Saudi club are covering his full salary, and there is no clause allowing a permanent transfer.

"I am very happy with this opportunity to represent this great club, which chose me in appreciation of me, my work, and what I can offer the team," Rios told Al-Ittihad's YouTube channel.

He added: "That was one of the reasons that encouraged me most to join, the people, the fans, and the support they gave me even before my arrival, as they were calling for me to be signed and hoping I would come."

He continued: "That was a great motivation for me, and I am very grateful to the fans for their support and the affection they showered on me and my family even before my arrival. I felt I was one of them, and that is what encouraged me, and I am very happy about it."

He went on: "Putting my name forward to join the team was a very important matter, and it gave me great motivation, especially with the history of the club that I came to know, as it also motivated me a great deal."

The midfielder continued: "The most important thing that attracted me to Al-Ittihad is that it is the people's team. It is a team that came out of the neighbourhood, and this expresses and represents me, whether as a Colombian, or given my upbringing and the years I spent in Brazil."

He elaborated: "I am one of the people, and the people are very important to me, and that is what encouraged me to come, for the club and its fans are one single entity."

Support from the stands clearly means everything to him. "I feel great support from the fans, and I will repay their support with what I offer on the pitch, with fighting spirit, and by giving everything I have in every training session and every match. This is my character."

He concluded: "I am a player who never gives up, who gives everything he has on the pitch, and who is ready to sacrifice his life for his team-mates and the club, and that is what I will do. I think people will come to know me for my fighting spirit, my strength, and the effort I put in on the pitch."

Rios could make his debut this evening. Al-Ittihad host traditional rivals Al-Nassr at the Al-Inma Stadium in Jeddah in the fifth round of the Roshn League.