Deco (1): "The current team is similar to my Barca"

Former Barcelona player Deco gave an interview to Catalan sports paper Sport.





Its already been a few months since you left Barca. Did you leave something unfinished in Barcelona?
No. Everything is fine. What happened, happened.

Did you view Pep Guardiola announcing publicly that he would not count on you, Ronaldinho and Eto'o, as unfair?
I already knew it. It didn't matter what Guardiola said because I didn't want to stay either. I already had spoken to the club and it was not anything new that he would say that, it wasn't news.

Then it didn't bother you that he said it publicly....
No, cause I already knew it. I could care less. I had already decided that I would not continue in Barca and the club had assumed that I would be leaving, so no, the fact that it was said publicly did not affect me.

It is assured in Barcelona that the good environment has returned to the team after the departure of certain players. Do you think they are referring to you?
Having a good environment depends on a lot of things. Not just some players, but rather the coach, the fans, the environment of the club. Right now Barca has a new coach and a new project, so its normal that things may have changed some. Regardless, we are just into the season and Barca hasn't won anything. There was a need to win and we achieved it. When I left we had won titles, like two league titles and a Champions League. That was a really good team. And Ronaldiho was the best out of all of them. In my opinion he is the best player in Barca’s history.

What happened that caused everything to go so wrong, with many of the teams pillars out?
The problem in Barca is that when nothing is won the most important players are blamed. But, well, that is also good because the fact that they point you out means that you are one of the important players.

Were you happy while it lasted?
Of course. I was able to achieve my dream in a big club like Barca. My dream was winning titles, and winning them there is special. I am happy for all that I experienced there, they were some very happy years in my life. In my opinion Barca is one thing and everything that surrounds it is another. I went to Barca wanting to play there. I had some great offers but my dream was to play at the Camp Nou. I was able to achieve that and win some important titles. I was very happy.

Barca’s start to the season has been spectacular. Does it remind you of your days?
I think so, this Barca is similar to our Barca. The last two years we still had quality and even though we did not win any titles, the team was still very good.

Why is it that Guardiola’s team offers these positive feelings, like in your days?
Because there is a new coach, that arrived with a lot of energy which he transmits on to his players and who can work more peacefully. That’s very important in that kind of a team. Barca in all of its history has only won two Champions Leagues. We won one of them and we did it at a time when there was peace. Now Pep has come to be with players that have played there for years and with the new ones who are also very talented. I am sure things will go well, but they still haven’t won anything.

Seeing this years level, do you regret leaving?
No, I had to leave one day. I wasn’t happy anymore. I was happy for a long time, but then I wasn’t anymore. Therefore I could not continue to be in a place where I didn’t feel right. I had to change something in my life. But every thing is ok. In Barca when someone leaves its seems as though its because there was a problem, but its not that way. I simply wanted to find new challenges, new athletic goals. I have been able to do that at Chelsea. Here, like in Barca, the players are world class, super-good, which is why I continue to strife for all the titles in another club.

Translated by: Mario


This was the first part of this interview. The second part will follow in the coming days with Deco talking about his time at Barcelona and about his new club.