Bojan: "I don't regret missing the Euro"

Barcelona player Bojan Krkic gave an interview to Spanish newspaper El País.





The sensation that was generated last season was that your life was
going at 3 000 kilometres per hour.
Yes, everything happened very fast. My life changed radically. Thousand things happened to me.

That 's the biggest difference compared with this year?
Yes, things have calmed down, the rhythm is good, not so fast.

You've played half of the games you played last year. Any regrets?
It's what it is, I'm not complaining. Maybe what is happening now is more normal than what happened last seaon. The situations is different. Last season the coach made a lot of offensive substitutions because we needed to win or overcome. This year, when we reach the last twenty minutes, we're winning and other things are required.

Do you feel more comfortable?
Do not ask a player who played little if he feels comfortable, last year I felt very comfortable because I played.

But you had a greater responsibility to score?
If I had, I wasn't aware of that. I just played, things turned out well for me and that's it. This year is different. The team is doing very well and now my phase of learning is on another level. But as I was learning last year, I still continue learning, but in other ways.

You have been compared with Raúl. What do you think about that?
It depends on whether you believe in it or not. Hopefully one day I can be so proud of my career like Raul can be but I'm not dreaming of repeating his successes because that is impossible. I am Bojan not Raúl, and that has always been clear to me. So I fill myself with pride when someone says that, but nothing more.

Do you regret having given up playing in the European Championship?
No, it was a perfect for me to end the season. I'll never regret it. I needed it and I'm perfect now. At that time I didn't have the strength anymore to go to a European Championship, with all the work that it entails and everything you must give. I said that, the coach understood it and that's it. Basically everything is more normal than it seems.

You felt a lot of pressure in Malaga, where you made your debut against Italy?
It had nothing to do with pressure. There is no pressure when you play, it's only there before and after a game. Pressure didn't affect my game at all. I came out, I played... But I started the season at 16 years of age and there are things that affect a boy of 16.

Not all the kids of 16 years are the same...
Clearly, but I speak of me. I went from playing with people of my age to changing my clothes next to Ronaldinho. One day I could walk calmly along the street and a week later I couldn't do that anymore. It's not easy. I went from being anonymous to playing at Barça. I could not go anymore to any birthday parties, to the
movies or to a restaurant with friends because I was a Barça player and everyone knew me. I wasn't one of the guys anymore... It was not a gradual move, it was there, boom! All of a sudden it happened, while the team was going though a hard time. The players and coaches helped me a lot. I have also changed, I have learned and now there are other people around players who are closer to my age, like Piqué, Busquets, Victor, Pedrito. That also helps.

The fans care for you. Does that help?
Yes, people like me a lot. But last year was incredible, now they like me the same but the big boom is over, everything is more natural and I'm going through a learning process.

This is what Guardiola wants?
Yes, although I don’t play that much. But I will play. And although that's not the most importante thing for a Barça striker, I wills core goals.

That's not the most important thing?
No, a striker at Barca needs to do more than just scoring.

Do you have difficulties playing away from the area?
No, with the national team I have already played games as second striker and there I also had to move to the wings.

Translated by: Riis


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