Sao Paulo director Joao Paulo Lopes admits they remain keen to sign Inter Milan striker Adriano.

"We would like to keep hold of Adriano so he can continue his recovery in Brazil," Lopes admitted on Radio Bandeirantes.

"We did the same with Ricardo Oliveira and he returned to shine in Europe. Adriano is happy with the work and he is getting on well with everyone here.

"However, we have an agreement with Inter that he will return to them in January and for the moment we won't be making any offers as it isn't ethical."