It could be the title of a movie, at PSG everyone loves Danilo! From the dressing room to the staff, including the managers and the supporters, everyone seems to like the midfielder. However, everything had started badly for the Portuguese international who had the greatest difficulty in convincing the previous coach Thomas Tuchel. After complicated months, the player is finally an almost indisputable holder in the starting 11 of Mauricio Pochettino.
The 30-year-old Portuguese international has played 26 games with Paris-Saint-Germain this season and has already scored five goals this season.
“I feel good here, in Paris.”
How is Paris-Saint-Germain’s third top scorer this season (smile)? _“_Good, good. I feel good. Not because I’m the third top scorer, but because I feel good here in Paris. In the club.”
With five goals already, you are very close to your best season in terms of goals. Would you say that you are in the best season of your career… period? “Pmaybe, yes. I am in a very different context from my previous seasons. I think I’m fine. So I could say yes. Maybe it’s the best season of my career.”
You, Gueye, Kimpembe and even Verratti… This season, PSG midfielders and defenders are scoring more goals than before. Is it an instruction from the coach to hit more, and to go higher on set pieces? “Yes. It’s something we’ve been working on since Pochettino arrived. We work a lot on defensive things, but also offensive things for midfielders and defenders, with also a lot of strikes. I think the goals from midfielders and defenders are due to that. We work a lot here, and it shows more and more.”
One has the impression, when one observes you, that you are all well physically. There are few injuries compared to previous seasons. How’s it going with the team of physical trainers? “Yes of course. Because the team of physical trainers, but also the medical team, do a lot of work with us, in the gym and on the pitch. I think it’s always important for injury prevention and to be physically well prepared for games.”
Is this physical work one of the keys to this season, in addition to talent of course?
Yes it’s important. Talent is not enough to win games. We must be physically well. I think this part of the job is very important because if you have both, the talent and the physique, you are unbeatable!
“I came here to Paris to play as a midfielder”
When you arrived at PSG, everyone was waiting for a sentry and Thomas Tuchel made you play in central defense, with Marquinhos in front of you. How did you feel at the time? Did you feel that this was not the best context for a successful debut in Paris? “Yes, of course, because I came here to Paris to play midfield. Afterwards, things changed. I played a lot of games as a central defender and there, for the adaptation, it was a bit difficult. Afterwards, things changed again, and the coach changed too, and that gave me a lot of confidence. Pochettino gave me a lot of confidence to progress.”
This story of positioning and the gaze of people who considered your performances a little complicated when you weren’t playing in your position, did that spoil the start of your story with PSG? “No, I don’t watch the things people say. I focused on my work. I knew the storm would pass. It’s normal ! All is not always bad. Things change. I work every day to get to that point, and that’s why I’m happy.”
Do you sometimes find the criticism of the press or supporters of PSG players too harsh? “Yes. I think so. But we’re at PSG. It’s normal that people watch PSG’s performances more than those of others. So I think it’s normal.”
Is the pressure greater in Paris than at FC Porto, which is an institution in Portugal? “I think so. Because everyone is watching PSG. So the pressure is greater, and the criticism more numerous. That’s the difference.”
“It’s always a victory to win”
Right now, things are going really well for you. Everyone feels it. In all the matches where you started, PSG suffered only one defeat. Have you become one of the team’s lucky charms this season? “No, no, no, I don’t think so. The statistics are there to be looked at, but no. Even if it makes me happy, I don’t think I’m the team’s lucky charm!”
We can feel you gaining momentum and finding your place in midfield. In the starting eleven, you are a bit of a surprise guest. Is it a real victory to have succeeded in imposing yourself in this team? “Yes, it’s always a victory to succeed in winning because here we have great talents, in all positions. To win, it’s difficult. We have to work a lot because the players here are all talented. So it’s always a pleasure to be in the starting XI.”
Do you feel that a love story is being created between the supporters and you? That they like you more and more? “Yes, in every game, I feel that. Because the fans sing a lot. Even when things are not going well on the pitch, we feel that they are behind us. And that’s nice because for me, they are the twelfth player on the pitch.”
Fans, managers, staff, everyone at PSG tells us that you are a great guy. Is it important for you to evolve in a benevolent context at PSG? “Yes, it’s important. We’re football players, but we’re also human. We have to be nice to everyone. We have to do our best to be in a good atmosphere. That’s what I try to do, and I feel good.”
Today, you are lined up in midfield, sometimes also in a three-man defense, when the system changes during the match. What is your favorite position? “To play in the middle.”
But what kind of environment? Rather defensive? “No, right in the middle. Any position!”
“Marco is incredible! Incredible!”
In midfield you play with Marco Verratti. What is your view on this player, your teammate? “Marco is incredible. Incredible. The things he does with the ball, and without the ball too. I’ve never seen a midfielder like him. He can do attacking and defensive things with such ease that anyone one who looks will think it’s easy. But no, it’s not easy.”
In midfield, there is huge competition to PSG. Do you manage to keep a pleasant atmosphere between you? “I think so. Sometimes it’s not easy not to play and to be in the stands every time. But we’re here to win titles, and it’s not just those who play who win the titles. It’s the group. I think if everyone thinks like that, it’s easier to win titles.”
Does this Parisian group live really well, in the locker room? “I think everything is fine. Like in every dressing room, there are complications. It’s normal. But normally everything is fine.”
With Portugal, you are one of the executives of the selection. In the Paris-Saint-Germain locker room, are you beginning to exercise a form of leadership? In other words, are you a boss internally? “(Laughs) No, I wouldn’t say a ‘boss’. But I make myself heard. Whenever I have to speak, I speak without hesitation.”
In which language? “We speak English, French, Spanish too. Because here, we are international! So we speak different languages. And on the pitch, I always try to talk to my teammates, to give them directions. I think it’s also my role to give offensive and defensive indications so that the team is balanced.”
He didn’t yell at Lionel Messi!
A boss, then (smile)! Moreover, recently, on the ground, we thought we saw you “bawling” Messi. You really yelled at Lionel Messi?! _“_(Laughs) Everyone says I yelled at Messi but it’s not true. I don’t yell at anyone because it’s not good. AT that time, I took a yellow card. Afterwards, I just spoke with Di Ma [Angel Di Maria]. It wasn’t even with Messi.”
You play with Ronaldo in the Portuguese selection. Today with Messi, Neymar and Mbappé in Paris. You are still used to playing with huge football stars! _“_(Laughs) Yes, I have the chance to play with these players. Messi, Neymar, Kylian and Ronaldo. I can add Verratti to it because, for me, he has the same level as the others. I am a lucky man.”
How do you view Nuno Mendes, your national teammate? Are you surprised by what he is doing at PSG right now, in his left lane?
No. I met Nuno at Sporting Portugal. I already knew his talents. But coming here, in a completely different context, is not easy for a nineteen-year-old girl. I try to help him with everything he needs. For me it’s always a pleasure to help Nuno, and I think he can become one of the best left-backs in the world.
His life in the locker room, his French lessons
In the locker room, who are the players you are closest to? Presko [Kimpembe]…
All players answer Presko! “(Laughs) He’s a real friend. Even a friend. And also there’s Abdou Diallo, Nuno Mendes, Colin Dagba, Gini Wijnaldum.”
And Mauricio Pochettino? What connection do you have with him? We have the feeling that between you, things are going really well. “Yes, because he gives confidence for that. He’s a coach who likes to talk, not just about games or training. He likes to talk about everything. About life, everyday life. It meant a lot to me. helped me because I needed to express a little bit what I had inside me. He helped me a lot with that.”
How many hours of French do you do per day to have reached this level so quickly? You have to give lessons to Neymar and Di Maria! “(Laughs) The first three months, I took one lesson a week. And I try to talk with my teammates. That way it’s easier to learn, I think. Now my teachers are Diallo, Presko, Colin Dagba, it helps. (Laughs) And Gana Gueye too!
Before Real, “We feel good physically and mentally.”
In what state of mind is the group before the Real-PSG match which is looming? “I think our state of mind is really good. We shouldn’t underestimate Real Madrid, but we are good. We feel good physically and mentally. Wednesday’s game is going to be a totally different game from the first leg. We have to be focused and tactically as good as last time.”
Are you confident? “yes, we are confident too. Because we know our qualities. We have confidence in everything we have done and everything we can do. When you’re like that, it’s easier to play and to be confident.”
Do you think we’ll see the same Real Madrid as in the first leg? “We will see a Real Madrid that will be behind in the score. They will seek victory and it will be a totally different Real Madrid. We are already prepared for it. And we have the weapons to beat Real.”
A PSG supporter who knew we were going to interview you sent us a message to tell us: “Danilo, he’s the one who will qualify us against Real”. It’s possible, right? (wide smile) I hope so!
In any case, Madrid will have to attack and therefore open the game. Should Paris Saint-Germain try to keep the result or go and score again to hurt them? “I think Real will be looking for the result. So the game will be more open than the previous one, which was a bit tactical. With our style of play, I think we can hurt Real Madrid.”
Before leaving Danilo, a quick question about happiness… on a scale of one to ten, how happy are you in Paris? “At nine !”
What would you need to get to ten? The Champions League? “(Laughs) There is always something missing! Yes, the Champions League…”