“I see Mbappé at Real Madrid in 2021; he must go to grow”

Robert Pires (10-29-1973, Reims, France) has given an interview to AS in which he reviews his successful career as a footballer, which he left in 2015, and talks about many of his compatriots related to Madrid, the club where he was about to play in 2000: Mbappé, Zidane, Benzema, Camavinga …

For those of you who have lost track of you since you retired from football permanently in 2015, what do you do?

I am a commentator on Canal Plus France and for M6, which is another television in my country. In addition, I am an ambassador for UEFA, Arsenal and LaLiga.

What exactly does a LaLiga ambassador do?

Go to events where you have to speak well of LaLiga to sell the brand of our championship, which is increasingly popular throughout the world.

Let's go with your successful career as a footballer. Your first retirement was in 2011, at Aston Villa, but you went back to playing football three years later, in India, why?

Because soccer hadn't abandoned me, in fact, I still play soccer, even with my friends. I did not want to stop, despite the fact that three years before I left it when I left Aston Villa. I was 40 years old, but I felt that my legs could continue to perform, yes, in a league like India, with a lower level, but I had a lot of fun, I coincided with great players, my coach was the great Zico … I'm not going to deny it, financially the opportunity was very good.

From when you left Aston Villa until you went to India, did you not have any offers?

No, none, and that situation was difficult.

And what is it like to play in India?

I knew I was going to a lower league, but it was also clear to me that I wanted to have fun and show all my experience to the footballers there. It is a country of many contrasts and we lived in a bubble.

Let's go back 14 years before going to India. One year after being runner-up in the UEFA Cup with Marseille, you came very close to signing for Real Madrid, in fact, you even posed with the shirt. What exactly happened for you to finally go to Arsenal?

It was a very difficult moment for me, although I felt privileged, because I had to choose between Real Madrid, Juventus and Arsenal. I was about, but about, to sign with Madrid, but Wenger called me many times, he ate my head and in the end he convinced me.

Is it true that your family got very angry with you because you didn't sign for Madrid?

Yes. Above all, my mother, who is Spanish (from Oviedo). When I called her to tell her that I was going to London, to Arsenal, she replied: 'You're crazy, you don't know English, with the quality you have, you must go to Spain…!' People told me that you can't say no to Real Madrid, but I did.

Do you think you would have triumphed at Madrid like you did at Arsenal?

It is difficult to answer that question. I was at Arsenal for six years and I was very happy, one of the few moles is that we lost the Champions League final in 2006 to Barça.

You know Arsène Wenger well. How many times have you been close to signing for Real Madrid?

A few. He told me that Florentino Pérez was delighted with the work he was doing with us at Arsenal. But, like me, he said no to Madrid … He preferred to continue with the project at Arsenal.

Do you think he will train again?

I do not think so. After being successful for twenty-something years at Arsenal, where he won almost everything, he retired two years ago and I think I would not want to return to this new football.

In 2006, your move to Villarreal caused a notable impact in Spain and Europe. Why that choice?

And why not? Many people in France, including journalists, called me to tell me if I had lost my mind, that which Villarreal team was, that I honestly had not heard of it either, that I did not know where it was on the map … I was wrong There were very good players, a great coach like Pellegrini, a president of ten and a wonderful and dedicated fans. I was there for four years and I had a great time, because there was not the pressure that you can have in the big clubs in Europe. The opportunity that I turned down with Madrid I had with Villarreal to play in LaLiga.

Besides Madrid and Juventus, what other offers have you turned down in your career?

One from Benfica and another from Metz, who wanted to get me back in their day.

I ask you about Zidane, whom you know very well. Do you think his cycle at Madrid is over?

It is tremendous that there is talk of crisis and the end of the cycle when Madrid lost two games before the Classic and then tied in extremis against Gladbach … I know that in Madrid there is a lot of pressure, but the coach and the players must work in a calmer climate. Not because it is Madrid or Barça you can beat everyone, otherwise football would be boring.

What is your opinion of Griezmann's situation at Barça ?; Was he wrong when he left Atlético?

The problem is that, like Madrid, rejecting Barça is almost a sin. I think he was not wrong when he left Atlético, but the situation since he arrived two years ago is not going well for Griezmann, but not for Barça either.

What did you think of what happened to Messi in the summer as a result of the famous burofax, wanting to leave Barça?

I believe that in the end he has decided the best. He and Barça are condemned to always be together.

Do you see Mbappé next year at Madrid?

Of course. I am French, I like PSG and I would like him to continue in Ligue 1, but if he wants to grow in his career, he has to sign for Madrid.

There is also talk that Real Madrid is behind Camavinga. Do you see him already qualified to play at the Bernabéu?

He is only 17 years old, uh … My opinion is that he should stay two more years at Rennes so that he continues to grow and then go to a big one like Madrid or Barça or whoever he chooses. It's early for him. If Rennes can, they must try to retain him.

Benzema disappeared from the French team in 2015 due to the 'Valbuena case'. In 2017 the courts agreed with him, but he has not been summoned again. You think it is fair?

It is a complicated subject, which has created and still creates a lot of debate in France. What happened with Valbuena does not interest me, but it seems to me that because of what he has done and is doing with Madrid, of course he deserves to go with the French team. He is one of the best strikers in Europe. But the last word is Deschamps.

Which France is better at the 1998 World Cup or the one that triumphed in Russia in 2018?

The one in 98, without a doubt. Everybody knows. It doesn't matter if they have Griezmann, Mbappé, Giroud… they wouldn't be able to score a goal for us.

Who has been the soccer idol of Pires?

Platini, of course, and I also really liked Míchel, the Madrid player. He had incredible class, running elegance and ball touch.

Who has been the best footballer you have played with?

Bufff! There are many: Zidane, Djorkaeff, Henry, Bergkamp, ​​Riquelme… And one of the best I have faced, Ronaldinho.

Messi and Cristiano are still on the cusp of football, but it is evident that due to their age they are in the final stretch of their careers. Who do you see as successors in the near future?

Hopefully in the near future, that we continue to be lucky enough to enjoy them much longer. Please hold out as long as you can. Successors? I don't know if there is. I enjoy Mbappé, Neymar, but like Messi and Cristiano, nobody. I don't think we will have players like them, at least in the near future.

Finally, I want to ask you why you have not remained linked to football as a coach or sports director.

The truth is that that vocation of being a coach has not awakened in me yet, I don't have the title either, but I don't know if I'll consider it later. I like being a sports director more.

Thank you very much for attending us.

To you.