What do you think of the way Liverpool have started the new Premier League season?
Well I think of course we would have liked to start better, at the moment we would like to be in a better position. I think we had a few very good games when we played really well, but unfortunately we lost a few points, especially at home. That is always crucial, but we had new players who came at the beginning of the season, so we are quite a new team, and hopefully in the next few games and across the season we will finish on a high. But at the start of the season we would like to be in a better position at the moment.
Are you confident the side will achieve the target of a top four finish?
I think so. I think we are capable of finishing in the top four. We know there are a lot of teams who will fight for the place, like Arsenal, Tottenham, ourselves. Newcastle are doing really well at the moment, and Chelsea, they are always there. We have to make sure, as I said especially in the games at home, we get the points, and go away from home and try to get some points as well, and I think we will be fine.
It must have been a very satisfying moment for you personally winning the fans’ player of the year award last season, after a bit of a difficult start to your career in England?
I’m really happy with the way I’m playing, the role I have in the team. When I came to Liverpool, I was always looking to be an important player and I think step-by-step I’m getting there and hopefully that will stay the same for the next few years.
During those first couple of seasons when the fans were on your back a bit, did you think the criticism was a bit unfair, especially considering you were such a young player moving to a new country?
I don’t know if it was fair or not. To be honest, I didn’t think about that. I just thought about improving as a player, tried to work hard and be a better player, and adapt to the style of English football. Of course it took a while, but I really feel comfortable now and I just try not to talk about it too much, because it’s in the past now and it helped me to become a stronger player and a better person.
What for you is the biggest difference between the English style and how you were used to playing in Brazil?
It’s the pace of the game. Here, it’s quicker and more physical. There’s more contact, and the referees let that go on in the game more than in Brazil. I found that hard when I first came, but I had to adapt and if I wanted to achieve good things at the club, and now as I said, I feel really comfortable at the moment.
After winning that individual award of fans’ player of the year, how keen are you now to win a trophy with Liverpool?
When you play for Liverpool, you are always looking to win titles, and with me it’s no different. It’s been four or five years since Liverpool last won a trophy, so the next team that achieves that and wins a trophy will be in the history of the club, and I am really looking forward to doing that. Hopefully it will be soon.
You’ve got Stoke in the Carling Cup this week. Some clubs use the competition as a chance to play some of their youngsters, but Kenny Dalglish has been picking some strong teams so far and taking the competition very seriously. How important to do well in the cup competitions this season?
It’s clear that because we are not playing any European games that we are taking the cup games very seriously and approaching them well. We have so far had difficult draws away from home, and Stoke is another very hard opponent. Even in the Premier League, all the big clubs lose points there. We lost to them this season in the league, but in the cup it is a different situation. We just have to go there and try to win, and as I said, everybody here in the team is looking forward to winning a cup, so why not win the Carling Cup?
Are the players missing playing in European competition?
I think every player would like to be involved in European competition. I think it’s important for the club and for the players as well. The atmosphere is always very good, especially at Anfield, where the European games are always special. But we have to concentrate on the Premier League games and the cup as well, and try to get back into Europe for next season.
This is your fifth season at Anfield. Do you see yourself staying here for the rest of your career?
When I came, I didn’t imagine that I would stay here for seven or eight years, but if I finish my current contract I will have been here about that long, so why not more? It’s just a question of being comfortable and happy, and if the manager is happy with you, and has you in his plans. I don’t like to be moving too much, and I’m really happy at the moment, but in football every week is different, so you have to see what happens. But as I said, I’m really happy, and can’t see why I wouldn’t stay here for many more years.
Would you ever like to return to play in Brazil before you retire?
Yeah, I definitely would like to. Of course at the moment it is not my plan to come back to Brazil, but I would like to before I retire. Maybe to play at Gremio again, my former club. That’s where everything started. But I still have many years to play, and many things to happen before I retire, so I think it may take a while.
Would Gremio be the only team in Brazil you would consider playing for?
At the moment I don’t think about even going back to Brazil to play yet. It would not be my first option at the moment. If you are happy at a club and you feel comfortable, then you have no reason to want to move. I said Gremio because I know the people and the club. It’s a big club in Brazil, and gave me everything I needed to play well. It’s hard to say another club at the moment because I don’t know what will happen, but we never know what is going to happen in the future.
You’re one of only four Brazilian players to make over 100 appearances in the Premier League. Why do you think that Brazilian players don’t stay in England as long as they do in countries such as Spain or Italy?
I think firstly the style of football is different. As I said, I had to change my style a little bit to do well in the Premier League. Maybe a few Brazilian players don’t want to change their style. Also, England as a county is different. Spain and Italy are more similar to Brazil, and life there is more similar, which is why most of the Brazilian players choose to go to Spain or Italy. But we have a lot of Brazilians players playing in England now, which means Brazilian players are adapting better than before to the Premier League.
Moving on to the Brazil national team, what went wrong in the Copa America?
It’s always hard to say, but of course we would have liked to have won the Copa America. The game against Paraguay; I don’t think we deserved to lose. I don’t think Paraguay had a shot on target. With the penalties, it was just a bad day, and we were very unlucky that we missed all the penalties. It’ a new team, new players, and it’s always really hard to build a new team, especially with the national team when you don’t train together a lot. The target is the World Cup, and we have to take this experience from the Copa America and take it to the next games in the Confederations Cup and then the World Cup.
How disappointing for you was it to end your first senior tournament with Brazil with a red card?
I don’t think I did too much wrong to get a red card. It was just an argument between players, and I think the referee chose two players to send off. Unfortunately, I was picked by him. It was disappointing, because when you make a bad foul or something like that you can understand, but you just have to move forward and try to learn from it.
Going into the tournament, there was a lot of hype surrounding Neymar and Ganso. Do you think there was too much pressure on them for such young players?
I think so. As I said, it’s a new team, and when the new manager is trying to build a new team, normally the press will pick a few players that will be in the headlines more often. We know Ganso and Neymar are very talented players and they are doing really well in Brazil. Even before, the press were asking about them going to the World Cup in 2010. They are the future of the national team, and I think the pressure is always really high. They did well, but it just didn’t work for everybody.
The results are starting to improve for Brazil now, with four wins in the last five games. Do you think that this is linked to the return of Ronaldinho, or is it something else?
Of course. He’s a key player. He has experience. We don’t need to talk about his quality, because his career has been fantastic for many years. He’s playing in Brazil now, so maybe the people in Europe might have forgotten him, but he’s doing really well over there and still scoring goals. I think he brought more quality and experience to the national team, which is really helpful for the young players, and he will be one of the key players for Brazil in the next few years.
A lot of people are putting pressure on Brazil to win the 2014 World Cup as hosts. Do you think not winning the competition would be seen as a failure?
I don’t think the people in Brazil think of any other option than being champions, especially being hosts. The pressure being very high could be good or bad. As a team, we have to prepare and approach it well over the next few years, and we will be ready as a team and able to cope with the pressure we will have in Brazil.
Brazil have got no competitive games now until the 2013 Confederations Cup. Do you see that as a positive, as Mano Menezes has plenty of chances to try out new players and new formations, or a negative, due to the lack of competitive match practice?
You have good things about it, because the manager can give chances to many players and change formation, and do whatever he would like to. But not playing competitive games is always hard because you want to play a three-point match with the atmosphere of an official game, so we are taking all our friendly matches very seriously. In the last game, we were a man down against Mexico and we won. If we were treating it like a friendly, maybe we would not have been able to win that game. We took it really seriously, which is the only way we will be ready for the World Cup.
How proud would you feel to play for Brazil as they host the World Cup?
Well first I just need to make sure I stay in the squad! If I have a chance to play it would be a dream. Playing a World Cup in your home country with your family, and all the Brazilians watching and supporting the team; I think it would be an amazing atmosphere. I hope I do well until then and have a chance to play.
There are a lot of good, young, promising players coming through in Brazil at the moment. We mentioned Neymar and Ganso, but also the likes of Leandro Damiao and Lucas Moura. If you could sign one player currently playing in Brazil for Liverpool, who would you choose and why?
I think at the moment Neymar is the most important player in Brazil. He’s got everything that a player needs. He’s got ability, pace, he works really hard, and you can see from his stats that he doesn’t like to miss any games, and he always wants to be involved. He’s very young, and I think he will improve as a player, so at the moment I would pick him. But I don’t think he’d be cheap to sign!
These young players are all being linked with moves to Europe. From your own experience, how hard is it to move from your home country when you’re that young to go and play for one of the biggest clubs in the world, and what advice would you give to those players if they were to move?
When I moved, I had to be patient and try to settle as quickly as possible. They will have to learn the language and change the way they play, because every county has its own style. In Spain, it’s not easier, but maybe more similar. But if you move to England, you have to be patient and work hard to adapt well and quickly.
In the past some young Brazilian players have struggled initially when moving to Europe. Do you think that the current big name youngsters might be better off waiting for a move when they’re a bit older, so they have more experience and are better suited to handling the pressure?
I think it would be a good idea for them, but even if they move when they are 23 or 24, they will still have to adapt and change the style of their game. If they move earlier, they may have more time to settle. If they move when they are older, maybe they won’t have that time that they would need. You just have to decide whatever you think is best. In life you have to make decisions, and sometimes it goes right and sometimes it goes wrong. But you have to cope and try to do whatever you need to.
Are you still following how Gremio are getting on in the Brazilian Championship?
Yeah, I still follow them. At the moment they are not doing very well. They are in mid-table, but they are better than they were at the beginning, because they were quite close to the relegation zone. Hopefully next season will be better for them.
What do you make of the title race in Brazil at the moment?
It’s amazing. This season has been incredible, because there are six teams that could maybe win the Championship with seven games to go. Every weekend I watch the games on television, because it’s so amazing. The league is so competitive, and people are enjoying playing there, and you can see a few big players who choose to come back because it has been a very competitive league.
Do you think that having so many teams involved in a title race so late on in the season makes Brazil are more exciting place than somewhere like England, where usually towards the end of the season it’s usually only two or three teams?
This season it’s been like this in Brazil, but in previous seasons it was more or less the same as in England, with maybe three or four teams fighting for the title. This season has been quite different in Brazil, and it’s interesting, because when you can see six or seven teams that can win the championship it’s always more exciting. But with the Premier League, even though the favourites are always the same, the smaller teams are always really tough to play against and it makes a really interesting game to watch.
What do you hope to achieve in the rest of your time with Liverpool?
I think winning a title is what I’d like to achieve and what I’m looking forward to. And of course, to always improve as a player and be a successful player in Liverpool’s history.
