Pique (1): "Messi is more decisive than Ronaldo"

Barcelona player Gerard Piqué gave an interview to Catalan sports paper El Mundo Deportivo.





How do you look back at your transfer?
I'm very grateful to Manchester for giving me the chance to return to Barcelona without too many difficulties. My contract expired in 2009 and although they had a higher bid from another club, they accepted the offer from Barcelona. I keep good memories about my stay there. I became a man in Manchester: I arrived when I was 17 years old, I grew, I gained experience and strength.

You keep in contact with your former teammates?
Yes, I talk with some players and manager Ferguson calls me every now and then. The atmosphere in the dressingroom and the club were extraordinary.

Everything was positive?
Barcelona contacted us in February and we informed Manchester about it. In the beginning, they wanted me to stay but Rio Ferdinand and Vidic were Ferguson's first choices. It was normal he counted more on them, but I also wanted to play. The season before, I played with Zaragoza and I proved that I was able to play in the Liga. When we played the semi-final of the Champions League against Barcelona in the Camp Nou, I expected to start the game. Vidic was out at the last minute, but after the siesta Ferguson came to see me and told me that I wouldn't play, that it wasn't possible because of the interest of Barcelona. In the end, Wes Brown played and I was extremely disappointed.

You have any special stories?
Well, not so long ago some English guy pretended he was me and asked tickets for the games, six to Rio and six more to Wes. And he did it every game until one day they called me to say I could buy my own tickets from now. I told them that I didn't know anything and so we wanted to know who that guy was. We made a setup and the guy was caught when he came to collect the tickets. I still don't know how he got my telephone number...

You have played with both Ronaldo and Messi. Who should get the Golden Ball?
I went along very well with Cristiano Ronaldo. In the beginning we both didn't speak English very well, so we talked in Portuguese and Spanish. He's a great player, like Messi, although they are different. Cristiano is decisive, but Messi even more.

How about Guardiola?
When I signed, I didn't know who would be the coach. When I haard it would be Guardiola, I thought "perfect". But if it would have been somebody else, that would have been ok too cause whoever it would have been, I needed to start from scratch. So I didn't even ask who would be the coach. I just wanted to return to Barcelona. I knew I would come back one day or another and the circumstances were right.

Things are going well since you returned?
The truth is that I didn't expect to play so much. That has been a pleasant surprise and I try to give my best so Guardiola keeps putting his trust in me. I connect well with him. I saw him when I was young and as a player he already was a great coach.

He has the English style?
No, his style is "Barça style". I nonetheless think it's important that we have many players that have played in the Premier League. It's a perfect mixture with all those youth academy players.

Your return was complicated?
I was aware that there were people who wouldn't understand my transfer or my return home. I knew that they would closely follow me, that there would be criticism but I was prepared fot that because it was logical that there would be doubts. People don't know how and why I left the club. But little by little they could see who I am and what I can offer to the team.


This was the first part of this interview. The second part will be published tomorrow with Piqué talking - amongst other things - about his youth idols and about a possible transfer to Real Madrid.