“The players don’t want to repeat last year’s experience”
Roger Bogunyà
In his first press conference of the season, Frank Rijkaard said “the players don’t want to repeat last year’s experience”, an experience he claims is “an added motivation for this season.”
The 2007-08 season is under way for FC Barcelona, after the first training session this Saturday.
Frank Rijkaard is ready for the challenge, which he sees as the chance to “start again from
zero.”
Looking for positive dynamic
Asked about the mood in his squad, Frank Rijkaard said “the players are behaving very
well”, before adding that “we are all human” and “things happen”,
which he considers “normal.” The target, he claims, is to find the right positive
dynamic.
Between 23 and 24 players
Frank Rijkaard knows how many players he wants to work with this summer despite stating that
“now is not the time to talk about these things. We have a big squad, but little by little we
will find solutions”. Ideally, the Dutchman would like “between 23 and 24 players for
the 2007-08 season.”
Delighted to play for Barça
Iniesta and Eto'o have been in the media of late due to the interest of other clubs in
signing them. Rijkaard responded by saying “all of the players are delighted to be at Barça
and want to be successful here. They are all happy and enthusiastic”.
Henry will play
Although he is still not in perfect shape, Thierry Henry “will play some minutes”
of the friendlies in Scotland. Frank Rijkaard was happy with his performance in today’s
training session.
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Bojan and Giovani
The Dutch manager also spoke about Bojan and Giovani, the two youngsters that have been promoted to
the first team. “They are squad players and, without pressure, we will see what role they
play. They are two highly talented players and I am happy for them.” Rijkaard added that he
thinks “this will be an important year for them”.