Speaking about the recent past, he spoke all things derby: "The atmosphere is fantastic. I played in derbies in England, Portugal and Turkey - with the latter being the most similar to here. When you're out and about, everyone is telling you that you have to win, not just Monchi. The people are lovely here, they treat you well and for this I want to thank them".
"It's easy to play with Banega"
The experienced footballer, who many times during his interview expressed the fact he felt as if he were 25 years old, is one of the stalwarts in the midfield and said that: "to play for Sevilla you have to be at a top level. You have to work a lot here because there's a lot of good players and if I don't work hard, I'll be left out. I'm delighted because I'm playing well; however, there's always room for improvement". From this, he went on to say: "When you come to Sevilla you don't need anything. You already know that it's a club with a great history that has won a lot of trophies, and you know that you can win things here". He also talked about his happiness about pulling on the Sevilla jersey: "When I had the opportunity to come here, I knew that I was going to be important - more so because of my age, I've been around a few leagues and I'm so grateful to Sevilla FC for the opportunity that they have given me. I hope to show that I'm good enough to play for this club".
The Brazilian underlined a few of the players in the team, focusing on his midfield partner Banega: "It's easy to play with Banega. We all know him. Whenever I win the ball from the opposition, I give it to him because he plays so well and is very calm on it". From this, he began talking about how he ended up becoming a centre-midfielder in the first place: "Nelson Rodríguez was the man who put me in this position for the first time, and Porto saw me and bought me. I started against Benfica, and afterwards I was never out of the first team for those six years. Stealing the ball of the opposition and playing a good forward pass makes you feel really good".
Fernando then referred to when he has learnt from coaches; overall talking about those in the Premier League and his current coach: "When you play, you learn many things and you know that you actually don't need to run as much, and that you can be better positionally... I worked with Guardiola and Pellegrini with City and now, here with Lopetegui. When you have experience, it's noticeable". He was questioned on current players in general in his position and wanted to make it clear that he has a lot to show: "The best in my position are Busquets and Casemiro; but Fabinho is a top player and Fernando is working hard to get there".
"Sevilla FC is a big name in the Europa League and we're going to try and win our sixth crown this year"
The Sevilla FC player, spoke about his childhood as something of a learning curve. He started off as a gardener and had his brother as his go-to person. He, however, always dreamt about becoming a professional footballer and had a clear idea, and this is what eventually led him to Sevilla FC: "Football is not earned with money, it is earned with quality and work. We have to think about winning each game. If we win, good things happen and this is our objective. Sevilla FC is a big name in the Europa League and we're going to try and win our sixth crown this year".
In addition to speaking about Banega earlier, he also evaluated the impact of the leadership of the captain, Jesús Navas: "Right now, Navas is the leader. He sets the example. You can be a leader by talking a lot, but he's an example about doing things which make you stand out. Now, of course, he's in the history books of Sevilla".
Furthermore, he evaluated the fact that he hasn't been able to play for Portugal after appearing for Brazil at youth level: "FIFA didn't allow me to represent Portugal after representing Brazil U20. If I haven't been able to play international football it's because God didn't want it to happen. I'm happy with being a footballer anyway. I'm only thinking about Sevilla and winning games right now".
"You will see the improvement in the upcoming games"
He couldn't hide his emotions when speaking about the Sevillistas and the 'Himno': "I adore the fans here. The 'Himno' is beautiful and when I hear it, it gives me so much motivation to play. In the derby we could hear it very clearly. We started to sing along with our fans as they are just as important away from home, as they are at home".
In additon, Fernando, who is always thinking about improving, said that: "There have been games where we've had a lot of chances and we haven't scored. However, we created the chances and to do this is very difficult. We know that things could be different and I think that you will see this in the upcoming games".
Fernando delved into the level of competition there is La Liga: "The quality of the sides surprised me the most. Every team has at least 3 or 4 players who can make a difference, something which I didn't expect. They know how to move the ball and they know exactly what they're doing. In England, the games are more physical but without the quality that there is here. For example, Levante came to us to play and to win. In England, you see many teams who come and put everyone behind the ball."
"Lopetegui has a lot of ambition and drive to win things and for this reason, I get him"
Although he had already mentioned him, he went on to pay more remarks to his manager: "Working under Lopetegui is special. He has a lot of ambition and drive to win things and for this reason, I get him. We hope that, together, we can make the fans happy. He comes from the national team, Madrid and that's a good thing because he comes with a will to win every game. We give everything out on the pitch".
In addition, he spoke about possible improvements: "I always sit down to watch my games to see what I've done well and what I haven't. You're always thinking about how to improve in training but when it comes to a match, you give your all on the pitch". He spoke again about the match in Ipurua and the growth of the players like Koundé since then: "The game against Eibar was very difficult. We played well in the first half and in the second, we didn't play at all. We lost and I was distraught after losing three points that we shouldn't have lost. For example, for Koundé it wasn't easy. Being 20 years old and having a bad day, it takes character to pick yourself up and in front of the fans, it's important to do that".
To finish off, he spoke about the family bond there is here at Sevilla and the work that the team is carrying out: "I always dream big. I want to win trophies with Sevilla and put my name into the history books of this club. We're working towards it and I hope that we can achieve it".
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