FERNANDO: "IT WAS WEIRD BEING OUT OF THE TEAM, I HOPE TO HAVE A GREAT SEASON WITH MY TEAMMATES"

"It was tough. I played a lot of matches in pain. I remember the last match, the derby against Betis, I was in so much pain. I considered three or four times telling the manager that I couldn't play after the warm-up, but I managed to and we got the win. I couldn't play anymore after that. I'm glad I'm over that now and we have a new season ahead of us. These holidays were really needed after a complicated season."

"We've done it for three years in a row now and we're motivated to finish in the top four again and consolidate ourselves there"

The Brazilian referred to the club being in the Champions League for another year: "Our goal always has to be Champions League qualification. We've done it for three years in a row now. I've said we need five years in a row and we're motivated to finish in the top four again and consolidate ourselves there. It's important because we have a different budget and we need it to compete with the teams above us. It's great experience for the players and every player wants to play in the Champions League."

Finishing up, Fernando spoke about his ambitions and his desire to help the team: "I'm motivated to win the biggest games. I want to win another trophy with Sevilla. We are going to work for that. I work to be in the best condition possible. The years go by, we can't change that, and we get older but I work even harder to be at 100% and to help as best I can."