Sousa Talks About QPR and Italy...Ainsworth Very Positive and Lavishly Praising Sousa

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Goal.com EXCLUSIVE: Juventus Legend Paulo Sousa “100 Per Cent” Certain Of Inter Scudetto Win
Juventus and Portugal great Paulo Sousa has told Goal.com in an exclusive interview that he is “100 per cent” sure that Inter will win the Scudetto this season, while he hits out at the Bianconeri, and also says that it is possible that Cristiano Ronaldo could move to Real Madrid this summer…

It is not everyday you get the chance to talk to a genuine legend of the game, but that is the honour that was bestowed upon Goal.com’s Carlo Garganese and Stefano Federici, as they caught up with ex-Juventus and Portugal star, and current Queens Park Rangers manager, Paulo Sousa, for an exclusive interview.

The 38-year-old was one of the top midfielders in world football during the mid-1990s, a classy and elegant schemer who excelled for the likes of Benfica, Juventus, Borussia Dortmund and Inter, and who remains the only player in history to have retained the Champions League, having lifted the prestigious trophy with Juve in 1996, and then Dortmund a year later.

Queens Park Rangers

Sousa’s playing days ended at the age of just 31 following a series of crippling knee injuries, but he has since embarked on a coaching career. After a stint as assistant to Portugal national team coach Carlos Quieroz, Sousa was last November offered the chance to take over as manager of English Championship side Queens Park Rangers.

The West London club, currently ninth in their division, are expected to reach the Premier League very soon due to the financial clout of owners Flavio Briatore, Bernie Ecclestone and Indian industrialist Lakshmi Mittal, who is the fourth richest man in the world.

“I accepted this offer because I believe in this project,” Sousa exclusively told Goal.com at QPR’s training ground in Harlington.

“I believe I can achieve the targets set to me by the board.

“I am ambitious. I don’t have doubts about my ability as a manager. This was a nice opportunity to prove that I can achieve great things.”

Asked whether he was hopeful of securing promotion this season, Sousa answered: “What I believe is increasing the quality of each player, and increasing the quality of my team.

“I want to create the base in order for us to complete our next vision, which is to gain promotion to the Premier League.”

Sousa The Coach

Sousa is less than two months into his first serious job in management, and he didn’t want to look too far ahead when asked whether it was his ambition to one day coach in Serie A, as well as boss Portugal.

“First of all I want to coach because I love to be in football, and I love to coach and lead people,” he explained.

“For that, of course, I don’t have doubts. I am in the best country to become an important and recognised manager, and this is all that matters for now.”

Sousa The Player

Sousa had a glittering playing career, representing Benfica, Sporting, Juventus, Dortmund, Inter, Parma, Panathinaikos, and Espanyol. He won national titles in Portugal and Italy, a Champions League with both Juve and Dortmund, and also claimed the FIFA World Youth Championship for Portugal. As part of the ‘Golden Generation’, which also included Luis Figo, Manuel Rui Costa and Joao Pinto, Sousa would go on to win 51 senior caps for his country, travelling to two European Championships and one World Cup.

Quizzed on what he considered to be the best and worst moments of his career, Sousa stated: “The best was winning trophies, like the Champions Leagues I won, and the international cups I won.

“The worst was my injuries, which I suffered with a lot.”

Juventus Bitterness?

In 1996, Sousa was regarded as one of the best centre midfielders in the world, having helped lead Juventus to a Scudetto, Champions League, Coppa Italia, and a UEFA Cup final during his two years at the club.

However, he was then surprisingly allowed to leave to join German giants Borussia Dortmund, a decision that Sousa still appears to be bitter about today.

“Why did they sell me? Because they didn’t believe in my quality any more,” Sousa sniped.

“I picked up a knee problem, and they believed that I could no longer achieve the same high levels.

“They took the wrong decision because one year later I beat them in the Champions League Final.

“And I didn’t only beat them once,” he laughed.

“I later beat them again in the Champions League with Panathinaikos!”

Serie A

Sousa spent five years of his career in Italy, and so it was only natural that the subject should switch specifically to Serie A, and in particular a couple of his Portuguese compatriots at Inter; coach Jose Mourinho, and midfielder Ricardo Quaresma, who has flopped since arriving from Porto in the summer.

“Mourinho is a ‘winner’ as a person, a ‘winner’ as a coach, a great communicator, he has great training methods. I am a big fan of his,” Sousa declared.

“As for Quaresma, sometimes, some players need a little more time to adapt to a different kind of culture, and a different kind of game.

“What I know from Mourinho is normally he gets the best out of all players. Sometimes he needs a bit of time to do this, but with Mourinho the quality and the ability of each player will always come out.”

Inter For The Scudetto “100 Per Cent”

Perhaps Sousa’s most emphatic quotes of the afternoon came when he was asked who he thought would win the Scudetto this season.

“This season, I have no doubts whatsoever,” he responded at the speed of sound.

“Inter will win. One hundred per cent Inter will win!”

Italy v England - Champions League

Next month, Inter tackle Manchester United in the Champions League, while Juventus and Roma also face English opposition in the form of Chelsea and Arsenal respectively. So who will win these ties?

“I will speak generally about this,” he said, this time far more cautious.

“In the last five years Italian teams have lost a bit of quality, while the English teams have gone up in quality.

“However, this season Italian football has grown again, and in each of the two games anything can happen.”

Cristiano Ronaldo

To wrap up the interview, Sousa was invited to offer his opinion on Cristiano Ronaldo, who this week was crowned as FIFA World Player of the Year. So is the Manchester United man really the best player in the world?

“Now, he is not the best in the world. [Lionel Messi is],” he replied.

“But Ronaldo deserved the FIFA award because when someone plays more than 70 games in one season, it is not easy to keep up the high standards.

“Ronaldo is a player who is good at everything – physical, tactical, technical and mental – he has everything. Last season he also brought goals to his game.”

So will Ronaldo go to Real Madrid this summer?

“Everything is possible,” Sousa concluded.

Interview: Carlo Garganese & Stefano Federici
Words: Carlo Garganese Goal.com


Ealing Gazette/Yann Tear - QPR's Ainsworth says Sousa will make him a better coach
- Gareth Ainsworth is crediting new coach Paulo Sousa with revolutionising his way of thinking on the training ground - and says he is benefiting from the experience as much as the players.
Ainsworth could be forgiven for feeling a little deflated right now, having at one stage looked likely to be handed the job of first-team coach on a permanent basis after a successful spell as caretaker boss.
But there is no trace of lowered enthusiasm as he knuckles down to working under the Portuguese at the club's Harlington base and he says it is proving a real eye-opener.
"I don't want to give away too much about what we do, we like to keep that to ourselves, but I can say it is different to what we were doing in the past," Ainsworth told the Ealing Gazette.
"It's a new way of looking at things and I'm enjoying it. He's a very good teacher, not only to the boys but to myself and the people on the coaching staff.
"I know when managers change it's a very nervy time for everyone at the club, but he's been fantastic and I'm looking at it as a blessing because it's another learning experience for me.
"I've played 500 games and about 20 managers and now another one with a whole new outlook on a lot of things and that can only be a good thing for me."
Ainsworth added: "It definitely wasn't a demotion when I became Paulo's assistant.
"The caretaker role was just an interim thing and I'm very lucky to have someone like Paulo come in. He's a fantastic guy. His knowledge of football is absolutely outstanding.
"He's played in all the major countries in Europe and he's brought a wealth of knowledge with him and I'm learning from him all the time." ..Ealing Gazette