“We have to stick together, players and fans, so that we're all heading in the right direction”

INTERVIEW

They come from different generations, but their Benfica DNA is very present in their daily lives. Shéu is one of the faces of the Benfica mystique, the same that Aursnes has been rooting for since he arrived at the club in August 2022. The Norwegian international's 100 matches with an eagle on his chest, a milestone he reached against Estrela da Amadora on matchday 3 of the Liga Betclic, are the motto for an interview with the club's media, in which passion and sentiment are evident in every answer.

After 54 years with Benfica, during which time he played 17 seasons with the first team, from 1972/73 to 1988/89, Shéu, the former midfielder, is one of a number of players who have only played for one club during their entire professional career.

His dedication and attitude on the pitch unite Shéu with Aursnes, who says he is honored and “proud” to have played a hundred games with the Sacred Mantle. “Quite humble”, as he describes himself, the number 8 wants to add to a record for which the interviewee congratulates him.

A Benfica legend, Shéu sees himself in the profile of the midfielder, whose experience at Luz has been “very positive”. “The size of the club is much bigger than I expected,” he confessed, highlighting the preponderance of Benfica fans. “In almost every away stadium we have 90% Benfica fans, and that helps us a lot,” said Aursnes.

And who knows if, together, they might dominate Benfica's midfield, as Shéu suggested at the end, on a good-natured note...

SHÉU: It's a pleasure to be here and to be able to interview you. We Benfica fans really appreciate your way of playing and being. I wanted to say these words before starting our interview...

AURSNES: I'm very happy to be here with you, I feel very proud. And of course I'm very proud and happy to be here at Benfica.

S: I'd like to congratulate you on playing 100 games for Benfica in two years... That's an important milestone.

A: Of course, as I said, I'm very proud of reaching 100 games. I've been here for two years now, and to reach 100 games in two years... That's a lot of games. Of course, I still have a lot of games to go, but it's a good number and I want to keep playing more and more games for Benfica.

S: It must have been a bittersweet feeling because, on the one hand, you played your 100th game and, on the other, you got injured. How do you feel?

A: I'll be out for a few weeks, but I'm working hard to get back as soon as possible.

S: Let me just add that your profile leads me to believe that the time you'll be injured will be reduced. So it's a hope that can be read in your eyes.

A: I have that hope and I really want to recover very quickly. I'm going to do my best every day to achieve that. Of course, I want to try to get back on the pitch as soon as possible, because that's where I feel happy.

S: Of these 100 games, in 90% you were a starter. Was it harder to reach that number? Are you planning to continue? Do you think it will be harder or easier?

A: I didn't think I'd reach 100 games so quickly. I didn't know what to expect from myself, that I would play so many games. I was very humble, and I still am, because I think it's a very big club. To play so many games for this club is a real honor for me, and I'm very proud!  Being a starter in so many games is always an honor, and I don't take it for granted. At Benfica, with its history and size, and all the good players who are here, it's an honor! And I'm very proud to wear the shirt every week and fight for the club. I think that's perhaps one of my strengths, the fact that I have this attitude.

S: Congratulations on that and I hope you play many more games.

A: Me too.

S: You've scored eight goals for Benfica. Which was the most beautiful and the most special?

A: Perhaps my first goal for Benfica [against Santa Clara, in the Azores, on January 21, 2023] was special for me. I haven't scored that many goals. I'm grateful for all of them, but I think my first goal will be extra special.

S: And what do you think was your best game for Benfica?

A: That's a difficult question. One game I really enjoyed was in my first season, when we played Juventus in the Champions League. I think the team played very well, and I really enjoyed it, so it's a game I remember. It's a memory I have, a game that I think was very enjoyable to play in.

S: It's clear that the public likes a game to be highlighted, isn't it? We're looking for a game, but our profile, or Fredrik [Aursnes]'s profile, is that every game is important, and you seem to have batteries, don't you? They never run out. You run the whole game, with and without the ball... Where does that stamina come from? This ability to be always active in the game?

A: I don't know, I think it's been my style of play since I was a kid, always giving 100% and doing everything I can in every situation. I think that's part of me. I try to do my best in any game. And, of course, I think my genetics allow me to run a lot.

S: Well done, well done. I see a lot of myself in you, because you were also a team player who was discreet off the pitch. Have you always been like that, or have you adapted your way of being to a club of this size?

A: I've always been like that, and I also tried to be myself when I came to Benfica. I've been trying to be myself, as a person and as a player, throughout my career. I think that's good and that everyone should do it, of course. They should try to be themselves. It's not that there's only one way to be, everyone is different, and in a locker room there will always be different personalities. Everyone should try to find their own way. And I am the way I am.

AURSNES: And what were you like?

SHÉU: I was also very pro-team. Very much for the team, so to speak. Much more than thinking about myself, I thought about the team. I really liked to think about the team's needs. I was always trying to understand every moment of the game so that I could influence my teammates. I also had to work hard, because otherwise I wouldn't play either, right? I had to work hard, because I thought that if I didn't work hard, he [the coach] wouldn't look at me.

A: Yes, yes.

S: How do you deal with the fans? Here, the passion of the fans is greater than in Norway or Holland [the Netherlands]... What do you think of that?

A: Yes, it certainly is, at least in Norway, where there isn't so much pressure. Having spent a year in the Netherlands, where I had to adapt a bit, but then coming here was also new for me. The fact that you always have this pressure every week, every day, is something you have to deal with. When we're with the team every day, we support each other. I think that helps a lot. We try to focus on what we can do every day to improve and to win the game at the weekend. I think that's where the focus should be, and that you and all the other players do everything you can every day to achieve the goals. I think we all do that. It's nothing more than what we want, that we and Benfica succeed. And we're working towards that every day. Of course, we have to live with the pressure, but it's something we have to try to enjoy a bit too, as players. Sometimes it can be difficult, but I think we all have to stick together, the players and the fans, all of us, to go in the right direction together.

S: Let me tell you that you're also a leader. Your way of being on the pitch and the example you set, playing on the right, playing on the left, playing in the middle... That's a form of leadership. Of course, if I were a player too, I'd be able to follow your example.

A: [smile] Together we can achieve our goals, that's very important. Obviously our fans, when we play at home or away, the way we feel in every away stadium... For me it was unbelievable! I didn't expect it when I came here. In almost every away stadium we have 90% Benfica fans, and that helps us a lot.

S: Without a doubt, without a doubt. I played many years ago, and it was like that too. That pressure you said is fundamental. Without it, I think we might even find it strange, wouldn't we? So pressure is our twin sister. It's with us, and that's so important.

A: Yes.

S: Changing the subject... What's your life like in Portugal? What do you think of our country? What do you like to do in your free time?

A: I really like it. The climate here is fantastic, the nature is beautiful, and the food is wonderful. The people are also very friendly and, for me, as a foreigner who doesn't speak Portuguese, they also speak English very well. So it's been great for me to come here, and I'm really enjoying it. I couldn't ask for anything more, to be honest, because it's such a nice place to live.

S: When you signed for Benfica you said it was an easy decision because of the greatness of the club. Is Benfica exactly what you expected or have you been surprised?

A: It's surprised me in a very positive way. It's been a very positive experience and the size of the club is much bigger than I expected. And also in terms of the pressure, the fans and everything we talked about before... It's much bigger than I expected. Here in Lisbon, and all over Portugal, there are Benfica fans. For me, it's really fantastic to see and experience this. It's a whole new world for me! Obviously playing football here is fantastic, and playing with all the good players who are here is a real spectacle! I enjoy every day being able to play here.

S: I've been with Benfica for 54 years, 17 seasons as a first-team player. I know very well what a Benfica player is, and you're a Benfica player too. Do you know what a Benfica player is?

A: Yes, very well. You know the feeling too, obviously. I feel very proud and honored to come here every day, to train, to play at the stadium, and to play away, where the stadiums are almost full of Benfica fans... It's fantastic! And I don't take it for granted, I enjoy it every day. I'm very anxious about the future, but I try to live in the present and make the most of every day.

S: Thank you very much. It was a pleasure for me to be able to interview you.

A: Thank you (...). Me too.

A: I don't know if that's right, but... For me, it was a pleasure. I'm very proud to have played 100 games for Benfica. And it was a pleasure.

S: Together? In midfield? We dominated.

A: We would be very good, right?