Vitor Borba Ferreira, Rivaled (Recife, Pernambuco, 1972), never won the Champions League with Barça, but left games and goals to remember. A hat-trick in San Siro, a Chilean goal against United. Then he did raise the 'Orejona' as Milan player in 2003. He is now a Betfair ambassador and gave AS a few minutes to chat about the Champions League.
-He made great goals in the Champions League with Barça, but he never won it with the Barça players. Is it a thorn?
-My memory of Barça will always be good, but I would have liked to win it. We made it to the semifinals twice, against Valencia and Madrid, when I missed a game with a knee injury. We stayed on the road.
-Did that competition really have anything special for you?
Yes, it is different from any other. All the players want to come to Europe to play in the Champions League, because it is impressive. Everyone dreams of being champion of the Champions. I was in Milan, but it was sad for me not to have played the final against Juventus in Manchester. I was on the bench in the final and I wanted to get out. It's sad because, for everything I did in soccer, I wanted to play that game. I had participated in others in that Champions League and wanted to help in that final at Old Trafford, but I didn't go out …
-Before asking about the Champions League itself, I wanted Arthur to talk to me about it, because he is his compatriot. How do you assess the behavior of the club and the player from the outside?
-For me, Arthur had to be with all the players because he is not yet a Juventus player. I had to be with the team. I don't know what exactly happened to Arthur because I don't think a player goes to Brazil for nothing, because he doesn't want to play. He is calm, good person. I don't know what happened between Barça and Arthur, it's something we don't know yet. It is a situation that should have been discussed so that it did not happen, because it is bad for the player and bad for Barça.
-The fact that Barça let Arthur go, is it a mistake in the medium term?
-For me Arthur had to stay at Barça. He had already said that he is a great player. And the press said that he played well, that he was a Xavi and that he played similar to him. Everyone spoke well of Arthur. He played calm, easy, with the ball at his feet. It gave calm, passed the ball well. But I don't know what happened because Arthur had many years to play for Barça. In my opinion, he had to stay a long time at Barça.
-You have experience in World Cups. He won in 2002, reached the final in 1998 … Everything is decided in one match, like this Champions League. What can you change with this format?
-First, Barça have to pass the Naples game. Is not easy. It is a difficult match. Without fans I always say it is complicated. Then you would have to think about that kill-kill, which will also be complicated. It is very difficult to play without people. I think there are no favorites. What changes in this format is that there is no second game and a team with more tradition may be left out. The strongest team may be left out. With a double round, you can play badly one day and then recover and change the situation. Not now. You can be a favorite but if you don't play well that day, you can be out.
-Messi said that “playing like this does not give us to win the Champions League” and after the match against Osasuna he went further and assured that this way they would lose even against Naples. Do you also think that Barça does not give to win the Champions League?
-It is clear that when you leave a game, you have a hot head and say things like Messi said. Now he has had a break and is going to play to win. When you lose at home to a small team, you speak with a hot head. But Messi surely trusts his team and the players he has. Surely you want to be champion of the Champions and you want to make a great match. To win the Champions League, of course you have to play better than in LaLiga. Only this year is different. When you play without fans, it is not easy. There are players who adapt before, but others need the fans, something different. You have to be ready for every game. You are Barça and you have to always play well. Everyone likes Barça and Messi is a person who almost always plays well; if he doesn't score, he passes. And when your team doesn't play well, Messi gets angry because he wants to be champion. But Messi has confidence in his teammates, for sure.
– Do you think that Messi can use this tie format for a match?
-I think the players prefer two games. To a match, it is not easy. They can get you out of the Champions League. After two games you can recover. It is like Madrid. If he had played only one game with City, he would already be out. And now you can try. I think it is better.
-If you had to give a percentage that Barça has to be champion of the Champions …
-I'm not talking about percentages. What I'm saying is that for everything that has happened this season, it is not easy. But soccer changes from one day to the next. If he plays a great match against Naples, it can change his mood. But today it is difficult to think that he will win the Champions League. They talk about other favorite teams. But you have to see it. Sometimes everything changes. It's like in LaLiga. Nobody said that Madrid was going to be a champion and he got all the victories except one at the end and he was champion. In soccer, everything changes fast.
-Then, by whom have you put your money for the Champions League?
Favorites? You have Bayern, City. Is not easy. I think traditional teams are more favorites, but this Champions League is difficult.