Fernandinho bathed in applause

04-04-13 15:29:52

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On April 4, Shakhtar midfielder Fernandinho was receiving another lot of well-deserved prizes. The Brazilian was voted the player of the month according to Shakhtar magazine (read all the details in the April issue!) and recognized as the scorer of the best goal.

The event took place in the building four of the Donetsk State University of Economics and Trade named after M. Tuhan-Baranovskyi. Fernandinho was awarded by the legendary player of Shakhtar Mykhailo Sookolovskyi. By the way, Mykhailo Hryhorovych is a graduate of the university. In the times of Sokolovskyi the student the educational facility was called the Donetsk Institute of Soviet Trade. Shakhtar’s iconic striker recalled an interesting story in this connection:

- As far as I can remember, I called in at the Dean’s room, and he asked me straight away: “What is the strongest team in the Soviet Union these days?” I responded: “Well, we're sitting the top spot now, so that’s Shakhtar.” And he told me, “No, think on!” And added after a pause: “The students of our institute are, those who study here! The Donetsk Institute of Soviet Trade is the strongest in the USSR these days.”  (loud applause from the students)

The participants met with applause handing two glass balls to Fernandinho. The Pitmen’s number seven carefully put them in front of the microphones, for everyone to be able to see it. By the way, in the recently released film Ferna7, the footballer revealed a place in his house, where he keeps all those trophies! Believe me, there’s always enough space ona shelf for two more awards there.

After the official part, the students started asking Fernandinho questions.
 
- Do you have a dream?
- I have several. Some have already come true, others - not yet.

The room actually ‘blew up’ at the second question. It was asked by a guy wearing a multicoloured polo popping out from under his cardigan. And he asked it seriously and emphatically: “Was it difficult to make the decision to move from Brazil to Ukraine. We will return to this question further. But Ferna’s first words were not related to the answer:

- (Speaks in Russian.) Nice shirt. I liked it! Where did you buy it? (smiling) When I received the offer, had no information about Shakhtar. I received it together with Jadson. We were travelling without fear. Thank God that everything has turned out so well!

Then, Ferna pointed to the T-shirt again and accompanied it with a characteristic gesture - thumbs up! And he did the same throughout the entire communication. The player easily found a common language with the students, so the meeting only benefited from those chunks of humour. And the students just bombarded Fernandinho with questions.

- Would you like to take up a post at Shakhtar upon retirement? For example, that of a coach.
- It’s a lot easier to play football!

- What helped you succeed? What is most important for you?
- The most important thing in my life is God, the family and my job. And continuous work helps me achieve things. (pause) Plus discipline.

- Mister had his contract extended for two more years. If we look forward – it means 11 years at Shakhtar. What do you think is the secret of Lucescu? Some unique approach to training, his communication with players or anything else?
- There are no secrets. The main secret is a desire to win and to win only. Plus working hard.

- Fernandinho, how do you assess the chances of Brazil national team at the World Cup at home? And how great are Ukraine’s chances to qualify from the group?
- Brazil national team will play at home, and this is certainly a very important for them. Home stadiums, home fans - this is important. Given the pressure of torsida – particularly in Brazil - the national team has a very good chance to win. The Ukrainian team is young, it has a number of capable players. They showed their best in the recent two games. If they continue like that – they will have fairly good chances!
 
- Who will win the possible match Ukraine vs Brazil at the World Cup.
- If I play – Brazil! (laughing)

- How did you react to Willian’s departure? Can Taison replace him?
- This is a normal phenomenon in the world of football: when time comes, players leave for other teams. It is quite natural. When Willian was leaving, we all wished him well in his future career. Taison joined us, who is currently blending in with the team, he will show his best in a while.
 
- Who was your football idol? Who impressed you?
- Recalling my childhood, I want to say that I liked Brazil’s goalkeeper Taffarel very much. A fantastic player.

- Who do you think will make it to the final and win the Champions League this year?
- It’s hard to predict because all the teams are good. But I believe, Bayern and Real Madrid have the best chances.

- And which team is your favourite in terms of claiming silver in Ukrainian league?
- For me and our team, it is only important who claims the top spot. The second is not interesting for me.

- What team would you like to play for? Maybe in the future.
- I play for Shakhtar, I love it here and I'm happy. And if you ask about other teams - of course, I would like to play for Brazil.
 
- Recently, a film about you was released, what’s your impression?
- It is interesting. The film has been a kind of celebration of my service at the club, of what I have been doing here. For me it was a very emotional moment. The film was very much liked by me, my family and colleagues, it reflected not only the episodes related to Shakhtar, but also the shots from my life - so I kind of relived the past through it. But I would like to have another movie, about my future achievements.
 
- You’ve received many awards during your career. Where do you keep them: in Donetsk or you might take some of them away to Brazil?
- I keep here all the trophies, but eventually I will take them all away to Brazil.
 
- Many players return home at the end of their careers. Would you like to go back to Brazil?
- I wish that all the players return to their home clubs at the end of their foreign careers. I also have a desire to return to the team I grew up with. On the other hand, in sports it is difficult to predict the future, but I would like to return.
 
- We would like to hear from you the prediction for the next match with Dynamo.
- It's hard to say what will happen. But I hope that our team will win because this is the Ukrainian ‘El Classico’, its outcome is very important to us. Dynamo haven’t beaten Shakhtar for quite a long while, so they will make every effort to achieve that, so it is very important for us to pick up three points in Kyiv.

- When will we see Ismaily on the pitch? How is going the adaptation of players at Shakhtar?
- I can talk a lot regarding adaptation, but as for a player’s appearance on the field, I can only ask one person - Mircea Lucescu.
 
- You have had enough time to make sure that our winters may be harsh. How did you initially feel at Shakhtar? How long did your adaptation last? Do you face any issues in this regard now?
- Cold is something I can’t get used to. Despite the fact that I've been staying here for seven years, cold causes great discomfort.
 
- Why did you choose the career of a football player? At what age did you start playing professionally? What Ukrainian players do you like?
- I started to play football at 6-7 years of age, my whole family loved and practised this sport. And that’s how my professional career kicked off. As for Ukrainian football players, I have great respect for Olexandr Kucher - he has grown a lot in my eyes, being one of the most important players for Shakhtar.
 
- Would you like your children to follow in your footsteps and also become key players at a European top club?
- My son is three years old and he loves to play football. At home, he plays with the ball a lot, that is, he is interested in it. Of course, if he wants to become a football player, I will always give him every support. But, above all, he must be a good person.
 
- In your opinion, what went wrong in the away game against Borussia?
- Unfortunately, we did not achieve the result everyone had expected. I believe the main reason is the calendar. The team stayed for two months without any serious matches, so we approached the official games in poor shape.

- Mister, after signing a new contract, said that this team has potential. Did he talk about winning the Champions League? Should we wait for the Champions League cup in Donetsk?
- Shakhtar have potential. Everyone knows about it, because the team play well. But to win the Champions League, the potential should be different - higher. We have a chance to win the Champions League, but the team have to change their way of thinking and many other things in order to fulfil that.
 
- What’s your attitude towards the joint league with Russia? Do Shakhtar need it?
- If they combine those two leagues - it will be very good for the teams and will help them to further increase their level. But there is a negative point, which is connected with the fact that the teams will have to travel long distances and those trips will be very wearing. But I think the fans would be interested in attending the games, such as Shakhtar vs CSKA Moscow or other Russian teams.
 
The best question to Fernandinho was asked by... just the guy wearing that colourful T-shirt. That’s Yevhen Dolotin, the student in his fourth year of study. He received a scarf autographed by the best player of Shakhtar in March.

- When I was putting on this shirt in the morning, I didn’t even think that it would attract such interest of the player of Shakhtar, - Yevhen shared his feelings. – It’s always nice to talk to an interesting and renowned individual, so the question to Fernandinho were impromptu. All the questions and answers were worthwhile and interesting. I hope that in the future such events will be held again!

And we did not hesitate to check with Fernandinho whether the scarf was presented only for having an original T-shirt?
 
- It's not just about the T-shirt, - laughed Ferna. - The guy raised a few good topics. Most of all I liked the question about my son - I am also concerned with his future occupation. I am ready to support Davi, if he takes this path. And, frankly, I'd be happy just like my father, who brought up a football player.

FC Shakhtar
Press Office