WORDS WITH: RAMIRES Posted on: Sat 01 Feb 2014 Ramires took time from recovering from the midweek visit by West Ham to sit down with the official Chelsea website&look ahead to Mondays game at Man City,as well as outlining his determination to help secure 1 trophy which,until now,has eluded him. For the majority of our players,the likelihood of looking back on Wednesdays goalless draw with any fondness is pretty slim. The Blues dropped 2 important points in a game we would have expected to win prior to kick-off,&were left with little to show for a performance in which we registered 39 attempts on the Hammers goal. Now the dust has settled,Ramiresreflects on a London derby which was also his 100th Premier League start,having made his 1st for Chelsea in a 3-1 win at Upton Park in Sept 2010. For a player who,during his time at the club thus far,has played a pivotal role in successful Champions League,FA Cup&Europa League campaigns,the 100 starts is not a standout achievement as a Chelsea player,but it is still a good moment to take stock I enjoy every opportunity I get to play, Ramires tells chelseafc. To play that many games is a great achievement&very important,because its something many players would like to do. This club feels like home to me&I just want to carry on doing well,play as much as I can&try to help us win trophies. After signing for the club from Benfica early in the 2010/11 camapign,Ramires quickly adjusted to the physical demands of the English game,slotting into a 3-man midfield alongside Frank Lampard,MichaelEssien or John Mikel Obi,filling the hole left by Michael Ballacks departure. His energy&athleticism in the middle of the park ensured he became a regular in the side fairly quickly,&midwaythrough the season supporters began to see the Brazilian produce high levels of consistency in his play. His 1st goal for the club came when he put the seal on a 4-0 win away at Bolton,a memory which instantly brings a smile to his face. I remember that goal very well, he recalls. Every other player was looking forward to me scoring because Id been playing with them for a long time without scoring. At that moment,when I scored,I remember Didier Drogba hugged me&threw me on the floor&then all the other players arrived&jumped on top of me. I remember that goal as if it was yesterday,not just because it was my 1st goal for the club,but also for the celebrations that followed. His time as a Chelsea player has seen the 26yrs-old involved in a host of memorable matches,both domestically and in Europe. When asked to pick out his favourite Premier League memory,however,he opts for a game against our next opponents. I remember the game vs Arsenal at home last season because we were winning 2-0 at half-time&playing very well,but there have been so many, he says. The other game which stands out was at home to Man City in my 1st season. I won the prize for the clubs Goal of the Season in that game. I took a pass from Michael Essien&managed to dribble past 2 defenders&score. We won the game 2-0&I remember it well because of that goal. During the current campaign,Ramires has played 2,683 minutes,more than any other player in the squad apart from Petr Cech. While his versatility ensures he can play on the right-hand side of the supportive attacking trio,as well as at RB,as he did midway through the 2nd half vs West Ham,Jose Mourinhos favoured position for the Brazilian is as 1 of the 2 deep-lying midfielders. Having played alongside Frank Lampard,John Mikel Obi&David Luiz at various times,Ramires explains the demands placed upon each player dependant on the pairing. It depends on who Im playing alongside but we always need to adapt&have different functions during the game, he says. For example,when Im playing with Obi I stay forward,&its similar with David because he is a natural defender. When I play with Lampard,though,we have to find a way where,if 1 of us goes forward the other has to stay back&vice versa. With the players who are fixed defensively I have more freedom but with Frank we have to adapt well with each other. I think the manager trusts me,I always try to be the best on the field&I do everything to meet his expectations
Posted on: Sat, 01 Feb 2014 23:01:14 +0000
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