Sergio at El País

This is the Real Madrid portion of the interview that Sergio did with El País, and he talks about Mourinho, his hopes for the upcoming season and all that fun stuff.  Go here for the La Roja questions, just keep in mind that some questions and answers I’ve reproduced in both blogs because they pertained to neither Real Madrid nor La Roja, or both!

Q:  Why did you cut your hair?

A:  I have a lot of superstitions.  I wanted to play with long hair in the World Cup because in Austria, during the Eurocopa, I played with long hair and it brought us luck.  The truth is I’m quite superstitious: I always enter the field on my left leg, I tie my right boot first, I pray to my grandparents before stepping onto the field… once the World Cup was over, I thought I would change my look a bit.

Q:  Your goal celebrations also need to be explained.  Why do you do so many things?

A:  Well, because I don’t get to score a lot, and each time I score I want to dedicate it to two or three persons that I love.  What hasn’t changed is the somersault.  I started practicing that at the beach to make sure I wouldn’t injure myself, until I could do it with Madrid.  Now, each time that I score, I do one.

Q:  You’re 24 years old, but you’ve played in 247 games with Sevilla and Madrid and 69 with the national team, and you have scored more than 30 goals in top competition.  Is your life a gift?

A:  I’ve always believed that luck goes hand in hand with work and sacrifice.  To become someone in football, I gave up my childhood.  That’s hard. You see how your friends go to the movies, they go out at night, and you always have to say, “I can’t.”  I was already training with Sevilla at the age of 16 and had a professional life.  So, I had to give up a lot of the things people at the age do to be able to get to where I am today.  When Caparrós called me up, I was still in school, and since the training sessions of the first team took place at the same time as classes, I couldn’t even go to school!

Q:  Did Joaquín Caparrós change your life?

A:  Yes.  Not every coach puts faith in footballers without fame or experience like he did with that Sevilla team.  I will be eternally grateful to him because he gave me affection, he taught me professionalism, he showed me the importance of sacrifice and of keeping one’s hopes up… The day that I don’t have hope anymore is the day that I’ll be lost.  I always search for a new source of motivation and I’ve always set goals and sought to complete them.  When I got called up to the first team, it was a dream to be able to be with Javi Navarro, Pablo Alfaro, Notario, Darío Silva… with time, I realize the impact those veterans had on my career.  I was a very formal kid, quite annoying, but like a sponge.  They made it clear to me that it took a lot to get to where they were, and that I had to take advantage of the opportunity.  They always told me, “never be overly confident, because one day you could easily lose everything.”

Q:  Now, you’re considered a veteran at the Bernabéu.

A:  Yes.  When I look at Canales, I see myself.  When I arrived, at the age of 19, Zidane, Roberto Carlos, Raúl, Beckham were there… they transmitted to me the values that I would like to transmit now to those who have just come to Madrid.  It’s my turn to take care of the young players.  I’m a premature veteran.  I’ve had to mature quickly.  This is my sixth season with Madrid.  Not many defenders can say that. [I completely agree.]

Q:  What is the role of the second captain?

A:  To respect the position.  I’m one more on the team, but I have to take charge more than others, inside the locker room.  It’s a huge responsibility to represent such a great club, and it requires a lot of sacrifice and a great commitment.

Q:  That wasn’t enough to win titles in the last few years.

A:  It’s true that adversity teaches you a lot, but let’s see if the good times will return.

Q:  From the outside, it’s surprising that Madrid is starting from zero again, with a new coach, after coming so close to winning the Liga last year.  Isn’t stability needed?

A:  It would be a good idea for Mourinho to bring stability.  For the good of the group and the institution.

Q:  What does Mou have that makes everyone say such wonderful things about him?

A:  We’re all happy with him.  He has character, he’s direct and he brings out the best of everyone in the training sessions.  Now I understand why he’s won so much.  He has everything mapped out and he knows how to transmit that to the players.  It’s going to be great for us.

Q:  What is he asking for?

A:  A good attitude, to set good examples.  And sacrifice.  You can have a bad day, but you can’t give up hope.  You have to arrive each day with the desire to learn and to become better.  Mourinho is very demanding.  His demands are the best thing that could have happened to us because they make you better.

Q:  What part of your game would you like him to acknowledge?

A:  I respect equally those who compliment me and those who criticize me.  You can say anything about me, as long as I’m giving my all for my team.  You can say that I’m good or that I’m bad, but I won’t accept doubts about my attitude.  I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night after a game if I didn’t give it my all.  I can win or lose, but I can only sleep well if the attitude has been adequate.  Nothing pleases me more than the sensation of having given everything.

Q:  Last season, Madrid gave it their all but Barça took the Liga.

A:  Barça has a great team, fantastic players, and they were capable of winning the Liga.  It was nice, competitive and decided by one point.  That detail says everything.  It was crazy.  They won, and we can only tip our hats to them and offer them our hand in congratulations.  Let’s see if now we’ll be stronger than they are.  Their advantage is that the team is already formed and their system is in place, and we’re just starting, but we’re going in the right direction.

Q:  You’ve won basically the same trophies with the national team as with Madrid.

A:  It’s true.  Two Ligas and one Supercopa for one World Cup and one Eurocopa.  The truth is that I would like to win more titles with Madrid.