Memphis has given a press conference for the Asian media at which three words in particular were repeated over and over: work, assists and goals. So far, he has one of the former and two of the latter in official competitions, but he insists that the best has yet to come.
Here’s a selection of or favourite quotes:
First weeks in blaugrana
“I’m very happy to have landed in Barcelona, a lovely city where I hope to show my talent. It’s one of my favourite places and I am here to win games and play as well as possible for the team.”
“I’ve felt welcome since the day I arrived. The club has put a lot of faith in me. The squad have been nice and we all respect each other. That’s one of the strengths of this squad. And the reception from the fans when I played my first game at Camp Nou was amazing, a dream come true. But that was just the start because I want to achieve a lot of things at Barça.”
“It’s an honour to play for FC Barcelona. I’m enjoying it every day at such a historic club with such amazing fans. Playing for Barça means a lot to me.”
“I’ve started well but I have to keep this good play going. I still haven’t reached my best. I feel good, in form, and need to keep improving. I want to give goals and assists.”
Current form
“The result against Bayern was obviously disappointing. We have to learn from defeats and all keep heading in the same direction to turn a difficult situation around. But I strongly believe that we’ll find a way to fight for every title. We are Barça and I want to help the club to change things.”
“We have a lot of games ahead. The young players are ready to take their chances. We have a lot of quality and they are working hard to improve. The most important thing is for them to enjoy playing.”
“We want to be as strong as any opponent. We work and train hard to compete. I’m sure we can surprise a lot of people. We have the players to create good football.”
Setting targets
“I won’t to show how ambitious I am on the pitch. I never have numbers in my head, I just try to score a lot of goals and give assists. Personally, I think it will be a good season, but it will be for the team too.”
Ronald Koeman
“I know Koeman very well because we were together in the Dutch national team. I believe in his philosophy and way of playing. We know what a difficult situation we are in and we want to compete as much as we can. We need to stick together and work hard. The staff are all ready to get the best out of us, they give us confidence and try to get the best out of us in every game.”
“I feel confident. I have a coach who gives me a lot of freedom and confidence. He expects a lot from me and I’ll pay back that confidence with hard work. I work very well with Koeman and the whole squad respects him because he’s a historic figure.”
More tattoos?
“My tattoos are part of my body, my life and my image. We’ll fight for La Liga and the Champions League. If we do it, I’ll see if I can find room for the trophies. That would be nice.”
