The Brazilian fullback reveals that he’s feeling as good as he’s ever done in his career and hopes to “make it to the end of the season in as good shape as possible”
“Although we’ve got a good lead over Atlético Madrid and Real Madrid, we can’t take our foot off the accelerator because we know they’ll be there”
“I’ve told the Club that my wish is to stay at Barça”
One of Adriano Correia’s main objectives this season is to win as many trophies as possible. On a personal level he told us: “I’m feeling really good this season despite the small injuries”. Now that he’s put those injuries behind him he’s looking to “make it to the end of the season in as good shape as possible”. Barça is in a particularly strong position in La Liga with a 12-point lead over second-placed Atlético Madrid. However, Adriano believes there’s no room for complacency: Although we’ve got a good lead over Atlético Madrid and Real Madrid, we can’t take our foot off the accelerator because we know they’ll be there”. He reveals that he is currently discussing a contract extension with the Club. “My idea is to continue. I’m not thinking about leaving and I hope my agent and the Club can come to an agreement. I’ve told the Club that my wish is to stay at Barça”.
Fixture pileup
Barça has a testing few weeks ahead featuring Saturday’s league match against Granada, the first leg of the Champions League tie against AC Milan, the league match against Sevilla, the return leg of the Copa del Rey semi-final against Real Madrid and then another league match against Real Madrid. ”We have to take it one step at a time and just focus on the next big match, which is Saturday against Granada. It’s a game that can get complicated if you’re not fully committed. It’s a difficult place to go. Last season it was difficult and now it’ll be even more so as they’ve won their last two matches. Playing two important games so close together is always difficult”.
Competition for places
Adriano, who has the ability to play in a number of different positions, strongly believes that that the team-wide competition for places is one of the factors that makes Barça a great team: “Alves and Alba make it very difficult (for me). There’s a lot of competition and you have to be 100% ready all the time. When it’s your turn to play it’s also time to show what you can do”. He’s particularly happy that fellow South American Alexis Sánchez has got back on the score sheet: “We’re very happy for him and let’s hope he keeps on scoring goals to help the team”. He also has words of encouragement for David Villa and wishes him a speedy return to top form when he recovers from his current illness.