FCBARCELONA.CAT

29.11.2007 14:41

Gudjohnsen: “A derby is special”

David Puig

Gudjohnsen is well aware that a Barcelona derby between Barça and Espanyol is something very special and has no intention of being on the losing side. He has made a fast recovery from his injury niggles and hopes to be available for Saturday’s match.

Gudjohnsen found out last season that a match against Espanyol is something more than just the three points. The fact that Espanyol are just two points behind Barça adds even more interest to Saturday’s duel. Speaking at a press conference after training on Thursday morning, Gudjohnsen admitted that there will be a lot at stake on Saturday. “A derby is special. It seems that there’s more at stake than just the three points but the most important thing is that a victory would enable us to put more pressure on the leading places in the table. Winning would make us very proud, of course. That’s why, in the dressing room, we’re not even considering losing in Montjuïc”.

A big improvement in Lyon

The Icelandic striker believes that the team played rather better in Lyon last Tuesday and is hoping to keep up the improvement against Espanyol: “We had a good game in Lyon and worked together as a team. We have to continue with this dynamic but scoring more goals and conceding fewer”. However, Gudjohnsen believes there are a number of aspects that could be improved: “We have to continue working as a team and improve our overall performance. With our quality, if we keep to this way of working, we can win all our matches”.

A good moment for Eidur

Gudjohnsen is seeing plenty of action in recent matches. He started against Olympique Lyon and Recreativo de Huelva and opened his goal tally for the season in the Cup away to Alcoyano: “The injuries in the team meant that I started to get time in the team but I’ve worked really hard in the last few months and that has helped me a lot. My aim is to help the team as much as I can. Against Recreativo I wanted to prove too much and I made a mistake but I did better in Lyon. I played more for the team”.

Espanyol on a roll

Espanyol are currently enjoying one of their best starts to a league season for some time and are in fourth place with 25 points, two behind Barça. So it should be one of the most hotly contested derbies in recent years. Gudjohnsen hasn’t seen Espanyol play much this season but he’s well aware of the quality in Valverde’s squad: “I haven’t seen Espanyol much but I know they play good football and are very strong, especially Tamudo. But I believe we just have to focus on ourselves and realise that, if we play at our level, we can beat any of our opponents”.