"The time of the goalscorer"

INTERVIEW

Gonçalo Ramos, the Sport Lisboa e Benfica striker, in a interview with the BPlay platform, gives a very positive review of the current season. 

OBJECTIVES

"It is a very positive evaluation. I have been able to achieve my goals, both in Benfica and the National Team, but I'm still young, and it's all in the beginning."

GOALS

"More than representing my good form this season, it represents the team’s success, and it is undeniable that the team is in a good moment because we are making one of the best starts in the history of the Club and then, of course, this will be reflected in individual numbers, both for me and for my colleagues. The most difficult thing after a good start is continuity, and I hope to continue the work that has been done, although I know this is very difficult."

[DAD'S ADVICE] "WORK AT YOUR BEST"

"Every year that goes by makes more sense, because the demand, now and from now on, is always greater. Work is more and more the fundamental thing."

QUALIFICATION

"There was a lot of nervousness because it was a qualifying round, it was very important for us, for the Club, and for the fans. To be in the Champions League was the first objective that we had and almost managed to settle the tie in the first match. My hat-trick was important, and not even in my wildest dreams I had thought about starting the season with a hat-trick at home."

GROUP STAGE

"I was prepared. Nobody felt the responsibility of 'I have to solve this, I am responsible for handling this', We were all united to win the matches, it didn't matter who was going to be the protagonist. In the first match it ended up being me, then in the other qualifying round it was someone else, and what matters is that we advanced into the Champions League."

"To go through to the next stage ins first place, in a group with PSG, Juventus, Maccabi [Haifa] also was a very strong team even tough it doesn't have the status of the other two teams, was very important and another reason to celebrate. The main secret to these matches is to be ourselves, keep our identity, and not look at anyone as a 'bogeyman', or an impossible opponent. That was the secret for our success in the Champions League."

SCAR IN THE FACE

"I have a little gift here for Rafa and I to remember each other forever, but it was for good reasons, so no stress."

EVALUATION

"Overall, it is a very positive evaluation because we got 1st place, we are still undefeated, and we are undefeated not only in the internal competitions but also after overcoming these opponents that have a lot of quality. It is one of the key statistics to demonstrate our performance in the Champions League."

COACH ROGER SCHMIDT

"He is very good. He is one of the best coaches I've worked with. I have been growing a lot as a player, as a person. They help everyone, and that reflects in the results and the behavior of the whole team. More than the good knowledge that the gaffer has on the pitch, of making us play well, is the way he deals with us. Besides the coaching relationship, he tries to have a friendly relationship with all the players, and being closer to the players makes it easier for everything to go well."

ROUND OF 16

"The Champions League is always the Champions League. A lot of people look at Club Brugge and think it is an easy opponent, but we are in the Champions League round of 16. They advanced in a very difficult group, with teams with a lot of quality, and we will face it as always, the same way we faced the other matches, it's to win, but we have to be alert and prepare the games well."

SUPPORTERS

"We start the match, whether at home or away, it feels like we are always playing at home, we always have a lot of fans, and the support makes all the difference. The fans know that and to start the match with their support makes us feel 'obliged' to open the scoring in the first five, ten minutes, and we are already with extra support and playing with more players."