We were promised more Álvaro Arbeloa by Sid Lowe, and so we get the “Small Talk” interview! Go here the read the full thing; highlights below.
on music in the locker room: When Sergio is with us, he’s not allowed to put flamenco on – we’ve banned him. The other pain in the arse is Marcelo. I think even Sergio is better than him. I’m stuck between the devil and deep blue sea. You’ve got to choose between two terrible options. And if you try to put your iPod on they kill you, hahaha! But flamenco? Uh-uh. Banned. [I LOVE IT!!]
on the CL draw: I really wanted an English team, so I was delighted. I have great memories of my time there – the atmosphere is unbeatable. I sent messages to Xabi [Alonso], to [Raúl] Albiol, to Sergio [Ramos], excited. [Four Musketeers!!]
And everyone in the picture above is mentioned in the interview!
on England making an impact on him: Yes, a hell of an impact. When you get to April and May and you don’t see the sun, ¡madre mía! But I loved it and the football is everything. England helped me grow and made me a better player. I love the way fans live their football there, with such intensity. I know it’s a cliché but it’s true: everyone who goes to play there loves it. It was a wonderful experience and I would recommend it to everyone.
on still being loved in Liverpool: Much more than I deserve, much more than I earned. I look at Xabi Alonso: he was there for five years, he was a reference for the team, the focal point. In that last year, he was Liverpool’s best player. When he was out the team missed him more than they missed Gerrard or Torres; he was the center of gravity. It’s normal for him to be so loved by the fans. But for them to have so much affection for me … [shrugs, blows out his cheeks]. I was only here for two and a half years. I appreciate it so much.
on his Scouse: Uf! That was hard. Carra and Stevie, wow. In the end, though, you pick it up: that’s one of the other great things about going abroad. And now when we talk to Lass at Madrid, me and Xabi talk in Scouse … la! I loved Liverpool. London too: whenever I got a few days off, I’d go down there. Mind you, I said to Fernando you must be loving it in London and he just said: mucho tráfico, muuucho tráfico. He had to get out the city, haha! [I NEED TO HEAR LASS, ÁLVARO AND XABI TALKING IN SCOUSE!!]
on the last book he read: I’m reading a saga which they’re going to make into a series on HBO, I think. A Song of Ice and Fire. It’s a series of books and I’m on the third one.
on TV series: I think we all are; we’re all hooked. You’d think we were stupid but you can’t help it. My favorite was probably The Sopranos. As well as being a great series the ending is brilliant. I’m not going to say anything in case you haven’t seen it, but it was brilliant – and that contrasts with others. I didn’t like the way Lost went, the same goes for Prison Break … Heroes, I didn’t like. I haven’t seen The Wire but people have told me to watch that.
on whether he watched Torrente 4 just because Cesc was in it: Hey, I was in it too! With Sergio Ramos and [Gonzalo] Higuaín. We just played football; they didn’t give us any lines. I’m a big cinema fan: it was a shame that in England I couldn’t watch it because of the language. My English wasn’t quite good enough without subtitles.
Yes, finally something in English that does not require translation from me!!!