How do you feel about being an important player in the national team again?
Very happy. It is always a pride to come because it is representing your country, it is the reward for good work and you have to approach the two games (Scotland and Norway) as two finals to try to certify the classification as soon as possible.
In football, no one gives anything away, but in your case it gives the impression that things have to be earned especially, do you have that impression?
I like it because it means that constant work and discipline pays off. Football is very complex, there is a lot of pressure. You are exposed to the spotlight daily, you have to be prepared and, as I say, discipline and daily work pays off.
How is this pressure managed?
Since you grow up, footballers are subjected to the spotlight and you have to prepare yourself. I am increasingly in favor of hiring professionals for this. Because it’s getting harder and harder. There are more games, every three days. In the end you have to surround yourself with professional people outside to work on all aspects, both physical and mental, and reach the optimal level.
Do you work with a ‘coach’?
I have had to live through difficult circumstances in the world of football, a lot of criticism, a lot of pressure. So, I decided to put myself in the hands of a professional. He has made me radically change my way of seeing things. José Angel Caperán is my psychologist and he is also the one who has put more pressure on me than anyone else. He has squeezed me like I have never been squeezed before. There he has been the key to my change.
How do you see football now after this change?
Football is the same sport it has always been for me, but I see it differently. I visualize a lot, like for example Ilia Topuria (martial arts fighter) went to the Hormiguero and I think it focused the visualization a lot. I started it a while ago and, above all, daily work, having faith, believing in yourself and not depending on anyone. If you let yourself get carried away by what they say about you, you can get carried away by that dynamic of not being at your level.
And before this change, what vision did you have of football?
The same. As I said, football is my life, my passion, it will always be because it has given me everything. It is true that when things are not going so well you see it differently, you have less desire for some things, but thanks to the way I have been working and I am facing it. I know how to handle things when they go wrong and when they go well.
Are you getting a taste for playing as a center forward or, at least, more inside?
I’m getting a taste for playing in any position. The more versatile you are, the more options you have to play and this is good for me and the team.
From the outside it gives the impression that now you are calmer in finishing, that last season you were more hasty in finishing, do you see it the same way?
I don’t really agree. More than last year? Maybe he wasn’t handling things like he is now, but if you go back over the years at Manchester City he had better definition. They are streaks and I have managed to turn this around. There will be bad games, but it will not mean that you are going to enter into a bad dynamic. You have to know how to analyze things, analyze mistakes and not make them again.
Is Lewandowski a reference for you as a center forward?
Yes, I pay a lot of attention to him. Many times I try to compete within myself in training to score more goals than him or try to compete against him. This has helped me a lot.
Xavi has said that you are an example.
In a club like Barcelona it is very complicated. You are obliged to win every game and on top of that play well. Many times you can’t get everything. Discipline is essential for me because it keeps you from deviating from the path and the results come.
In the summer he had to gain their trust and he achieved it, although there was a lot of talk about offers…
In the summer I think they kicked me out more than I was really out. I don’t want to say who… But I am clear that I want to succeed at Barça. It is a very important club for me because from the first day it gave me confidence and I am capable of succeeding here.
They say about you that you also do very important work inside the booth, which is not seen on the outside.
If there is one thing I have very much in mind, it is that when it depends on me, I like to get involved. If I can help my teammates, the coach or the staff, I do it because I am a good person and I want to give my best. It is a very important thing.
With the departure of Busquets and Alba, Sergi Roberto has remained captain. How do you rate his work as head of the locker room?
For me Sergi Roberto is an example. He is someone who knows the house very well. He has been here all his life and he knows how to take the reins of the team and when it is necessary to give warnings, he gives them.
Let’s talk about the star theme, can you explain to us what the shark is that you identify with?
The shark is a bit of everything, although everyone says that it is a new Ferran, it is the mentality that I have always had, now it has borne fruit because it is reflected on the field. Something very important is invisible training. People only see Ferran for 90 minutes on the field. Nobody knows what we have behind us, the hours of training, the hours of training with physical trainers, the hours of psychologists, of rest, of food. It is based on the Ferran that I am, the discipline that I have, the mentality that I have, the competitiveness and always wanting to be the best.
How did the nickname come about?
It started as a joke in preseason with the Spanish team, who were at the table, it spread on social networks and stayed. It’s a nickname that I really like, really.
Children are especially delighted with this shark.
More than the shark I want to be an example for them. Show them that even if things don’t work out, you suffer a lot of criticism or no one trusts you, you must take it to the positive side, which motivates you. Nowadays, when they don’t trust me or criticize me, I look at it from the positive side and I have more motivation to shut up and turn this around. I would like to be an example for children.
Do they get to sing the famous song of ‘don’t stop, keep going, keep going…’?
No… It is not believed either. I’m not very aware of this.
What does the celebration mean by putting your fingers on your head, similar to a military salute?
Above all mental health. Being well in your head, I think is everything, when you are well, things go better and you face them in the best way.
How do you observe the evolution of Lamine Yamal, who has left the concentration, and how is such an atypical case being managed due to his extreme youth?
It is a very atypical case. He has just turned 16 years old. He is wonderful how he is handling it being already a starting player. He is going to do great things at Barça. You have to take care of it because these are atypical situations in which things arrive very quickly and you have to know how to handle it.
You are facing your third season at Barça. Is this the season in which you consider they have the best squad and can fight for everything, including the Champions League?
We have a competitive squad. In each position you have two or three players who can be starters perfectly and this is one of the bases by which the team is going to do great things this season, regardless of the result the other day (2-2 in Granada).
We are already close to a classic, on October 28, is it going to be a disadvantage to play it in Montjuïc?
No. The most important thing is to look game by game. Before the classic there is another League and Champions League match. You have to look match by match and that’s it.
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You already scored against Madrid, does the shark have a special desire to bite that day?
I want to bite in every game, the opponent doesn’t matter.