Rafa Santos: “I think this year is ours because we have a lot of things we missed”

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The Brazilian center celebrates the club’s bet to sign his compatriot Taffy: “With him we will go up a level”

Brazilian Rafa Santos (Sao Bernardo de Campo, age 31) is preparing for the start of his third season with ElPozo Murcia Costa Cálida. The international center, which was not quite well received because it came from a minor league club like Japan’s Nagoya Oceans, has become one of the pillars of a team that is aiming for everything this year.

–New season and maximum expectations. Is that right?

-Yes, we are already with that nervousness from the beginning of the competition [hoy en Tudela frente al Ribera Navarra]after a pre-season in which we worked very well, we have assimilated the new systems and above all, as seen in the Palma tournament, we are starting to get a good physical tone.

– Is Javi Rodríguez, the new coach, very different from Diego Giustozzi?

-Yes. They have nothing to do with each other, what sets them apart the most is that the new coach likes to defend individually, pressure after a loss, and while that requires more of you physically, it also gives you more control over the game. I am pleasantly surprised by his mentality. It was a very enlightening preseason.

–Barça are the ‘ogre’ again. Are they able to defeat him?

-Naturally. We played good games against them, our coach beat them twice last season with Santa Coloma. They have a very good team but, in addition to enthusiasm, we have a good squad and a great desire not to spend another year in white. We have to die for a hobby to which we have given nothing in recent years.

-Of the other rivals, which one do you think is more dangerous?

-The Spaniard is the best league in the world, there are rivals with options to win everything. There’s Inter, Jaén, Palma, Jimbee or Viña Albali, anyone can beat you, but by entity and how we’ve worked and what you see, I think this year is ours. We have a lot of things that we missed, we respect all our teams, but we are not afraid of any of them, including Barca.

–Bruno Taffy arrives and the two centers of the Brazilian team merge into the same team.

– Taffy comes to help. All good players who come are welcome. For the team it is another plus to have him with us and it will give us a lot more options. It is clear that the commitment of the club is important and even more important for the team. With Taffy we raise the level.

–What does Rafa Santos want to do this season?

I want to do great things with the team. It’s my third season, my contract is coming to an end and in Murcia my family and I are very happy with life, I want to continue here and for that to happen we have to work hard. If we have a little bit of that luck that we lacked in other seasons, to come out on top and that brings other things. My dream is to continue at the club.

– Do you live in the capital of Murcia?

Yes, I like downtown. Furthermore, Murcia is a hospitable city. I have two children and it is a joy to go out on the streets, to the parks, or to take them to the fair. Other colleagues live on the outskirts, but my wife and I like to live in the center of the city.

-You are said to be the spoiled child of the fans, do you feel that way too?

-I know the fans respect me for breaking my chest. They know I’m not kidding and that when I wear the shirt, it’s to fight and go for it, and people see and feel it. Rafa Santos suffers with defeats that you can’t even believe and people appreciate that, that’s why I always dedicate it to them when I score a nice or important goal.

– When Rafa Santos comes home and has lost a game, do his people tell him what he didn’t do or are they more supportive?

-It’s complicated that when you lose, they come to you to say or claim something. In those moments you are frustrated. My people support me to the death. When we lose, we always know why it happened.

-In a squad with so many Brazilian players, who do you get along with better?

-I get along with everyone, but Felipe Valerio, with whom I spent two years with Carlos Barbosa, is the one with whom I have the most complicity.

– Of the youth players of the team, which one do you prefer?

-I like Alberto and Darío, who with the minutes they count for me are more players of the team, but there is an 18-year-old youth team trained with us, his name is Mario and be careful with him, he is awesome .

-What does Rafa Santos spend his free time on?

I have a boy and a girl and I love being with them. But I follow the sport in general. Now, to Carlos Alcaraz in the US Open or the Champions League. Always exercise.

– What do you want from the fans?

-This year we have to bring color to the stands, we play futsal.

Source: La Verdad

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