#hearing the cope radio intro at the beginning reminded me of home

[the-necessary-unnecessary]

Translation of the interview with Mapi Leon (Part 1: minutes 9:30 to 18:50)

- We have gone to Barcelona to get into the changing room and meet one of the players in that changing room who best knows Atletico de Madrid, as she played there not long ago. And that player is Mapi Leon. Hello Mapi!

Hello

- How are you facing this visit to Atletico de Madrid, are you all doing it a bit more relaxed keeping in mind what has come before with the result of the first game, the amount of goals you scored, the results Atletico has had lately, the results that you guys have had lately. Are you all a bit more relaxed or...

No

- ... you’re not lowering the bar in the slightest

No, no, no, not at all, not at all. [laughs] You already knew that I was going to say that.

- Yeah I knew that was going to be the case

No, not at all. I mean, maybe people might think that as there’s more distance [points wise in the table] then although we say we’re not lowering the intensity we must be even if it’s a bit. But not at all, that is to say um we arrived at a very similar situation last season, well we were i think 6 points away when we played at the Wanda and if we lost we’d be 9 away. And in the end, being the ones that are behind in the league, it’s everything or nothing. There is a lot of league left, I mean even if we hypothetically win this match it doesn’t mean that they would be completely defeated, at the end of the day there are still a lot of matches left and and we have to fight for them all until the league is over. But because of exactly that they are going to be, I imagine, extra motivated like we will be. Playing against Atletico de Madrid is always a great game...

- There’s no doubt about that

 There are no more words to explain it because in the end they have been taking the title for three years now. I mean, they have had some really great years these past few seasons and now its true that they have been having a bad streak but that doesn’t take away from the fact- well and they’ve also changed coach, the players have to win their spots, they have to work a lot.. and it is true that maybe they might not have a coach that doesn’t have as many days in the job as one who has been there longer would have but it is true that they are also going to be very motivated as it will be a new trainer and they will have to demonstrate that they deserve to play.

- in these days before the match, you who have played for Atletico de Madrid, do you talk to anyone who used to be your teammates? Do you exchange messages with then or in these situations does a footballer prefer to not talk with them- even if they’re friends like of course some of them are- is it best to not talk with them before facing each other?

Well, I’d imagine that it depends on what each person prefers to do but with me its true that I’m a bit careless with this kind of thing. [Presenter laughs] no its true its true i’m a bit careless. Well, I, maybe.. well no. Anyways I was talking to Angela not long ago as it was her birthday but I texted her about her birthday and little else. In these matches I individually also like to focus on the game and even when you get to the pitch I prefer to avoid meeting other people

- Yes so that the out of football life doesn’t affect the game

Yeah. Then after the game well you stay- well depending on the result you fancy staying to talk more or less. But I prefer to stay focused and then after the game whatever. But in the moment of the game and just beforehand I prefer to be only thinking about the match.

- You’re going into the match with some amazing stats Mapi. Talking about you, you are part of the defense and they have scored 6 goals against you in the Primera Iberdrola so far. I don’t know how to talk about this... my question would be, do you get bored this season in Barca where balls don’t seem to even reach the defensive line

It’s true that there are matches in which we do less but that is also due to the merit of the people up front who press very well, when they lose the ball they try to get it back fast, and all that. In the end we are also very clear about the way we play, how we like to be in possession, and if we can have the ball in their half then even better. It is also clear that we take risks and that those little inconveniences that maybe they’ll be a lot of pitch behind us etc etc. But anyways I think so far this year- I mean obviously we have mistakes and it’s normal but we work so that there’s as few as possible and because of that, as we have so few goals scored against us I am happy. But even those few goals bother me and they bother me a lot.

- And then there are 65 goals in favour, its an insane stat. I don’t know whether this has been seen before in a Primera Iberdrola because it’s win after win by a wide margin. In few matches have you guys scored fewer than three goals, even the defenders are scoring. What’s missing is your goal..

I know

- ...That I wonder where its gone, when it will arrive

It’s got lost somewhere

- But how do you view the winning streak in the changing rooms like jenni who has become the best goalscorer in the big European leagues, she’s the one who scores most goals. She scores them like churros [an idiom]. I don’t know whether this gets talked about between you all, if jenni talks about how on form she is at the moment. What does it feel like knowing that you have so much security with the people up front what with Oshoala, Hansen... there’s a lot of them. But I think right now, jenni is living one of her best moments.

To be honest, it doesn’t get talked about. But not because of anything in particular 

- Because she normalises right saying yeah this is normal

Yes well no, in the end she scores them and obviously some of us work so that they don’t score on us and others work so that we can score. Jenni is a spectacular player, she is really good. She has an impressive skill and well I hope it lasts and this year balls are hitting the back of the net that maybe last year wouldn’t. I don’t know whether this is because of working the game better, maturity of all the team as a whole. Last year maybe there were matches that the ball got stuck and wouldn’t go in however this year, so far, everything is going well. I mean, we’re scoring so I really hope it stays this way. 

- Why has Barça changed so much Mapi? We’ve been saying for lot of years, a lot of seasons that ‘this year barça will win the league, this year barça has the best squad in this history of women’s football in spain. But this year finally we are seeing that barça that we’d been waiting for for so many years. There will obviously be matches that are harder and there will be more balance between the teams but what has changed? Is maybe jenni the player who last year may have been missing from barça and that gave Atleti the final edge to win the title? What do you think has changed for barca to be such a steamroller this year this year whilst in previous years the team struggled so much?

My personal opinion... I mean in the end you also think because of things you hear or see and think ‘oh look this is interesting. It’s true that when a team, either male or female, has been so successful and has won a lot of titles in many cases it then has a slump. Its a slump because they’ve been winning for such a long time that its pretty normal that a team then has a lower period. And this is also affected by players moving around, obviously everything has a process, you also have to take into account the stability of both coach and players...  At the end of the day, regardless of how good they are they also have to bring into balance the type of play, the methodology of being a barca team. I also included myself here, when I came from Atleti there were a lot of things that changed. So sometimes all of that is a process, and only when all of it connects and comes together then it starts going your way. So I’d say that’s the main thing: we have matured as a team, we work during the games as hard as we can, maybe before we were more nervous... I think now we have grown, together. The new players who have come are, like always, very good players and they have come to really add something to the team which is great. So yeah, so far everything has been going on the right track. But we also have to work so that it stays this way as of course if we let our guards down now then that would be a mistake, it would mean starting to go backwards again and that’s the last thing that we should be doing.