Fulham have tonight confirmed the long-awaited signing of Flamengo forward Rodrigo Muniz for a fee believed to be in the region of £6.8m.

The 20 year-old Brazilian striker was the subject of a summer tug-of-war between Fulham and their Championship rivals Middlesbrough – with the influence of new head coach Marco Silva reportedly pivotal in persuading him to pick Craven Cottage as his destination. Muniz has put pen to paper on a five-year Fulham contract, with the club holding the option to extend that deal by a further twelve months.

Muniz told Fulham’s official website this evening:

“I am pleased about this new challenge. I’ve always dreamed of playing in Europe, in a league like the Championship, and I’m very motivated to do a great job. Fulham is a very important club in England with much history. They presented me with an excellent proposal and a career project that was fundamental in my decision.

“Fulham is a traditional club in England, over 140 years old, and had great players who made their careers in different teams worldwide. It has a sensational structure and a passionate crowd. Marco Silva is a great coach, young and with great potential. He likes to work with young athletes, and I know that I will evolve a lot with him daily, together with my teammates. I hope to learn a lot from him, his staff, and my teammates as well.”

The youngster, regarded as one of Brazil’s brightest striking prospects, has scored ten goals in 32 matches since breaking into the Flamengo first team and helped the Rio outfit win back to back national titles in an impressive start to his senior career.