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Chicharito during an interview for Sevilla FC
First team

CHICHARITO: "I HAVE TO BELIEVE IT; WHY CAN'T I HAVE MY BEST YEAR YET?"

17/10/2019
Entradilla
"All the strikers have the same objective: to win. The competition is good for the team"
Cuerpo Superior

Javier Hernández, Chicharito, who arrived at Sevilla during the summer transfer window, yesterday gave an interview to the club where he talked about his career before his arrival in Nervión. The Mexican, who is full of good values, feelings and intentions as regards to his personal and sporting life, has conveyed a "magnificent vibe" - as he himself would say.

Chicharito started off by explaining that for him, there's no difference between his name and his nickname: "Now it doesn't matter to me, Chicharito and Javier are the same guy, it doesn't matter to me what people use to call me. I inherited it from my father and I wear it with pride on the back of my shirts; except in the World Cup where I have to change it. My father and I made it very famous and we are very happy with it, but I don't mind what people call me".

Cuerpo Inferior

"I take care of myself as I'm a footballer 24 hours a day; however, I like to be natural, without pretences and share everything with everybody"

The Mexican international, a great user of social media, explained and argued for this social hobby: "I'm very active on social media, well, I try to be anyway. Social media annoys some people because it gives an unrealistic view. I try to act as normal as possible, to be natural, without pretences and share everything with everybody. There are a lot of ways to keep up to date with the world and I like being open and showing people what life as a footballer is like. We have a responsibility to be public figures but, at the same time, we are human beings. We can't change who we are". 

"It's our lives, I'm a footballer and I don't intend to be prosecuted for being one - I'm not losing or missing out on anything. It's about not doing anything with surpluses in life. I train, I look after myself, I'm a footballer 24 hours a day and I also like to be on social media throughout the day also. The important thing is that everyone keeps up to date with each other and that everyone respects each other's opinions. The most beautiful thing we have on this Earth is diversity and learning from one another", he stated.

"It would be boring to always be in your comfort zone"

"I've been here for a month now and I'm very happy. I'm excited by the challenge that Sevilla offers me, and it demands a lot from me. I'm going to keep on saying it because it brings out the best in me, I want to be at my peak with this club, this massive institution that is Sevilla", he said on his first few weeks in the city.

Chicharito spoke about why he chose to join Sevilla FC, which incidentally made him lower his wages: "Due to passion, to love and because of my way of looking at life  - that's why I came here. My head told me to come here and then we will see whether or not what has been said is true or not - Why, at 31 years old, can't I have my best ever season in Europe? If you give everything to the team and the coach is happy and he gives you confidence, that's all that matters. This club attracted me a lot and it's more than worthwhile being here; no matter if I'm earning more or less money than beforehand. I know what it's like to play in La Liga and I wanted to live through this project myself. It's fantastic to be apart of this. I was weighing up my options: either to stay in England, return to Mexico, move to the United States or Asia... I preferred to come to Sevilla. It would be boring to always be in your comfort zone".

The part about his grandfather

Chicharito, who has scored goals aplenty throughout his career, talked about one which reminded him of his grandfather: "My career started the day I scored my first goal. Thankfully, there have been a lot since then. Goals for Leverkusen, for Chivas and with the national team also. However, the goal on my debut when I scored against France is special. There's a little story about my grandad, as they told me they would tell me about him when I scored against France. The goal helped us qualify and for a family reason, this is my most special goal. My family say that on that day, he was quite emotional. Everything happened so quickly; going to Manchester, playing in the World Cup... It was all so special". 

"The best thing about life is the journey, because everything happens so quickly"

Sevilla's striker continued and made it clear that in life, everything is short-lived; and that, without a doubt, the journey is the best part: "I missed that U17 World Cup, but everything happened after that. My grandmother used to say: "take your time and everything will fall into place". The best part is not the end result; but it's when you really want something and you're willing to go that extra mile. The journey is the interesting part, because everything happens so quickly in life. You have to enjoy and make the most of it. If you win a Europa League, you go again for another one, and then after that, another one. I always focus what is important: the journey right now and the present. We really want to win on Sunday, and we will want to win the one after that - it's what we work for each day."

"I have to believe that I'm here because I'm a good player, even if there's no guarantee of this. This is the necessary requirement"

Chicharito wasn't going to hide his ambitions, the work he puts in and the fact that nothing is ever given to you: "We're very hard-working in my family. A lot of work needs to be done in order to live such an extraordinary life. However, there are sour and awkward moments. My parents see the work I do and how I train, and they used to tell me where I could improve and how to make myself better. Sometimes, there were tricky times. In these moments, you just need to be patient and not look for the answer right away. Sometimes you have to believe even if you're not sure what's around the corner. I believed that I was a good player and I had to believe so. I still believe it now that I'm here in Sevilla. The likes of Pozo and Bryan have to feel this way without knowing exactly what's going to happen - it's called blind faith".

Reaching for the stars

Chicharito was in no mood to put a limit on his thoughts, and for the Mexican, it's much better to dream big: "What's the best this club can expect, a league title, a treble... why not? If you set yourself a limit, what happens if you surpass it? Let's dream about big things, that's how it is. Superstitions don't exist. We aren't going to promise it as it had never been achieved before; but then again others who have done it hadn't done it before also. Sevilla had never won a UEFA Europa League, and their moment came and look what's happened now - five time winners. The first time can come at any stage, that's what's beautiful about football and the world. I also dream about winning the World Cup and the Champions League.

"When there's a lot of competition in the team, this makes us improve and makes life difficult for the coach"

For Chicharito, competition within the squad is "healthy and logical" in order to improve: "I've come into a very strong squad, just like in my previous clubs. In United, Chivas, Mexico, Leverkusen, West Ham and of course now in Sevilla. There's always competition for places in a team sport. If not, you might as well see what you can do on your own. Here, we are all one. When I started playing football I was a right-back, and I've ended up as a striker. It's great to see the competition in the squad, it's what makes us better and makes life difficult for the gaffer. I would love to play every minute of every game, but the competition is normal and expected - which is no bad thing". 

Everybody is in the same boat: we want to win

Hernández wanted to state that everyone is heading on the same path, after seeing that De Jong had a good game against Barcelona: "Something I like to do is to see what the media say and I never want, despite having my idea and my goals, that any word of mine is misinterpreted. I want to start, but so do Luuk and Dabbur. It's normal that everyone wants to play. I'm trying to help my teammate. I'm a striker and I know it's not easy at all, but we're all on the same wavelength - we want to win. Everyone wants this. I would love to win by starting every game, but that's up to the coach to decide and you just have to give your all when you get your chance".

"The fans in the Sánchez-Pizjuán are very special, everyone notices it and it helps the team so much"

Talking about the Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán, Chicharito stated: "It's a beautiful stadium and it's very special. Everything about it; the 'himno', the fans, the atmosphere that is created... it's very special. It helps a lot. I played in it as an away player and I felt it then. In other stadiums it's not as noticeable. In this stadium however, it's very noticeable and you know that the stadium is behind you. I hope that it stays the same; win, lose or draw, that this taste that the stadium brings will push you on to get the three points".

"We have a large squad and we are going to bounce back no matter what" 

Finally, the forward spoke about the squad and emphasised the quality in the squad from which that the gaffer has to choose: "I see a great team. We are coming off the back of a tough loss against Barcelona; however we started well in that match and we are learning from it. We have to continue this and improve on what we are doing well and focus on Sunday's game. We know we have a large squad with a lot of talent. The gaffer knows that we are going to bounce back no matter what. It's to his benefit that he has 25 players all ready to play with his vision in mind".