Rodrigo Javier dePaul (Sarandí, May 24, 1994) is one of the highest ranking footballers in the Atletico Madrid. The Argentine arrived a few months ago as a candidate to be one of the signings of the year in LaLiga. Months later, like Atlético itself, he has left great matches in which he showed why half of Europe loved him and he is the key piece of the Argentine engine room; and others in which he was the victim of the team’s own irregularity. What is clear is that From Paul it is charisma, personality and pure football from head to toe. That is why his message is always that of a leader, like the one that both he and this group will continue to make Atlético great.
How is the team?
“Well well. Against Osasuna we got through a game that wasn’t easy, that field is never easy. The team did very well, they played a super smart game. It gave us a lot of confidence to be able to work calmer for Wednesday”.
And personally?
“Well, as always working, beautiful and important things come. I like the dynamic in which the team begins to enter, with a lot of desire.
Was the meeting the other day needed to say things to each other’s faces?
“Sometimes these types of meetings come to light, when there is no information, that morbidity is generated of reaching many who do not have information and want to inform, they throw out a word, some comment that is not like that. We had a lot of meetings, lunches before the last game and nobody knew about it. The other day, Miguel (Ángel Gil Marín, CEO of Atlético), only came to give us his support, his trust, but as I said, there were never any doubts about the trust of this team, because the one who is involved in the day-to-day activities of Atlético de Madrid understands how to work, how footballers strive to respect the club we are in, which is not easy. I have a lot of faith in this team.”
He came to a champion team but has not been able to maintain the level of last year.
“Soccer. Soccer is this, otherwise it wouldn’t be so nice if the same ones always won. It is not mathematics, many factors play, the mental ones, the rivals. Today, when playing against Atlético, being the last champion, they give a plus. I am convinced that this team is going to give Atlético a lot of joy, as it has done in the last ten years”.
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Is Osasuna’s drive enough for a game as important as Manchester United’s?
“As I see and understand football, I think there is no need for this game streak before a date of the dimension of Wednesday. Playing the Champions League with this shirt, what the Wanda Metropolitano is going to be, with that rival and the history they have… They are all condiments that make the team super motivated and eager. This team, inside, never had doubts about what we can give. You see how we work. It’s just a matter of straightening out a bit at the level of results. You have to remember that this team, until May, will continue to be champions of Spain. That’s reason enough for us to be respected.”
What are the keys to the tie against Manchester?
“Above all, understand the games we are going to play. We have a very marked work plan, we know how our coach prepares matches, because of all the information he gives us. We have to understand, from that side, what kind of tie it is. Hopefully it will be a very nice game for people, that they enjoy it. And that in this first match we can bring joy to the people”.
Is Spanish football one step behind the pace of European football?
“I disagree. I watch a lot of football, I’m there all day. I know all the players, all the clubs and no, not at all. I had the opportunity to play in Spain, in Italy, which are two very technical championships, with a very high level. Together with the Premier they are the best leagues in the world. Each league has its own. The Premier will be more physical, more dynamic, the Spanish will be more technical, the Italian more tactical… But I don’t think that the teams that play in Spain can’t go out and compete on a world level. I think it is proven. In recent years many Spanish teams have done very well”.
What is your opinion of United?
“It’s a highly respected team, because of its history, in the Champions League too, because of the players it has… But hey, we’re confident in what we’re doing and we believe that if we carry out the work plan to perfection we’ll be able to, because in these games you have to play perfectly. Although in the world of football we live with mistakes and many times the goals are generated based on the opponent’s mistake, we will try to force it and play the perfect match to move it forward”.
What do you like about Manchester?
“In the eyes of the fan, perhaps you don’t see that great display that people like, with that great display as you see City with a lot of passing, a lot of space play… but Manchester, at the level they have , which is very fast, vertical, more dynamic, with fewer touches… it reaches the rival area quickly. And it has a lot of high-level players, with quality. I think that saying one is beside the point, but well Bruno Fernandes who also left Udinese and I know the characteristics he has but I couldn’t keep just one because they have so many great footballers”.
Cristiano already faced him in Italy.
“I faced him a lot of times, here in Spain with Valencia. Then many years in Italy. What am I going to say about him? The numbers speak.
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