get to know… Unai Casillas

For those of you that don’t know, Iker Casillas has a younger (and equally hot) brother, Unai, who’s seven years younger.  Unai Casillas signed this season with CD Móstoles, which plays in the third division.  Iker watched him play earlier this month.

Anyway, Defensa Central interviewed Unai, and at the request of reader Sara, here is the translation.  After reading it, I have to say that Unai has a good head on his shoulders (and a good-looking one as well), and that both things definitely run in the Casillas family!  Well done on both counts, José Luis and Mari Carmen!

Q:  Not many people know that Unai Casillas is playing with Móstoles this season.  How did you get to this point?

A:  I played for several teams in the past.  I began playing seriously in Majadahonda, and then I was also with Villaviciosa de Odón.  It was good for me, because they’re located close to where I live, Boadilla.  I then began thinking about taking things one step further, setting a series of new objectives, and from this came the idea to try out for CD Móstoles.

Q:  What’s a normal day in your life like?

A:  I get up early and go to university.  This year, I have classes in the afternoon, whereas last year I had them in the morning.  My plan is to find an internship to start working and specializing in what I like, which is company and market analyses.  And I have to balance all of that with the practice sessions that I have in the afternoons.

Q:  Last year, you were in France.  How was that?

A:  I learned how to coexist with others both inside and outside of the house.  I had to make my own meals and go shopping for myself.  You learn to pay attention to things that normally you don’t think about.  This helped me to appreciate more what I didn’t have there: my parents weren’t there, and I missed them.  It was a great experience because I also learned a lot about the culture, the language, how a French university functions and how people experience football in another country.  There, football is much more related to the fans and there’s not so much inequality between big teams and those at a lesser level.

Q:  How would you define your personality and your outlook on life?

A:  I think my friends and those who really know me would do a better job describing me, but I will say that I’m talkative and that I like to joke around, once in a while, with my friends.

Q:  And as a football player?

A:  I’m a central midfielder.  I like to help create plays as best as I can, and I also try to do utmost to defend, although it’s not the thing that I’m best at.  I’ve always wanted to create my own style.

Q:  Is there any player that you would like to play like?

A:  I’ve always followed Xavi Hernández, from the time I was small, because he was a teammate of my brother in the youth categories of the national team and I’ve had the luck of seeing him play many times.  He’s the best player I could try to emulate.

Q:  You’re 22 years old.  Is there the possibility of playing in the first division?

A:  Right now, I have no plans to play in the first division.  The only thing I’m thinking about is helping CD Móstoles and taking things step by step with my teammates.  My goal is to play sports, and time will tell if I can aspire to something from there, but right now I have no intention of playing in the first division.

Q:  What is your goal on the sporting level?

A:  As I told you before, my intention is to take things step by step, and help out my team with my work.

Q:  Where did the Casillas family get this love for football?

A:  It’s a bit strange because my brother is a goalkeeper and I’m an outfield player.  I should have wanted to become a goalkeeper, because my mother took me to all of Iker’s training sessions.  If we inherited this love for football from anyone, it was from my father, but we’ve also watched many games, played a lot on the streets and in the neighborhood.  In any case, and I say this sincerely, I’m one of those that really like to play football, but I don’t like to watch it so much.  It may sound like a contradiction, but that’s how it is.  I tell you, of the last six Real Madrid-Barcelona games in the Bernabéu, I’ve only been to one.

Q:  You physically resemble your brother.  Has anyone ever confused the two of you?

A:  That’s something that’s practically never happened to me.  There are people that say that we look alike, but I don’t think there’s that much resemblance.  Iker is Iker and Unai is Unai.

Q:  Have you ever faced Iker in a game?

A:  To tell the truth, no.  Maybe in my pueblo, when my brother was 16 or 17 years old and I was nine.  I shot the ball twice, but not more than that.  But nothing serious.  It’s funny because I’m sure that thousands of players have taken shots against him, but I’m his brother and I never did.  (Laughs).

Q:  Imagine if a game between CD Móstoles and Real Madrid came down to penalties.  How would you take the penalty against your brother?

A:  I would think about shooting to his right because he’s left-legged, but to tell you the truth, I don’t see myself shooting a penalty against him.  I wouldn’t dare (laughs).

Q:  Does Iker give you advice on how to cope with the world of football?

A:  Only in certain delicate moments when he tells me to stay calm, find support in things outside of football and to learn about things that I like.  For example, I like to go to a bar and talk to English people.  This is a hobby that I have.  I also love going out in Madrid and getting to know people.  He tells me to stay calm, because there are things that are much more important in life.

Q:  Make some predictions about who will win the Liga, the Champions, the Copa del Rey, and how your team, CD Móstoles, will do.

A:  I think Barcelona will win the Liga.  In Champions, I believe that Madrid can get to the semifinals and that a French team will beat them (laughs).  I hope Madrid wins the Copa del Rey because it’s the only title that my brother doesn’t have, although if he doesn’t win it, it won’t really matter because I could win it one day with CD Móstoles and be able to have one trophy that he doesn’t (laughs).  With Móstoles, we hope to end up on top of the table, but our goal is the three points that we play for each Sunday.