My exclusive interview with Chonburi's mid season loan signing, Diego Bardanca
I started in the main square of my village, Villarrodrigo in the city of León, Spain, playing with my brother and my cousin. My first team was San Lorenzo when I was 8 years old. Then Puente Castro (10/14 years), where both, my cousin and brother also played. When I was 14 years old, I left home and signed for the academy of famous RC Deportivo de La Coruña and this was the beginning of my journey.
How did you get the chance to move to Thailand?
Thanks to the interest of Buriram Utd.
What was your time like at Buriram Utd?
To be honest, it was marvellous. I had the best experience of my football career there. I played in the Champions League, won titles, had amazing owners, great team mates, top fans and a great stadium. As a club it is very demanding. You have to win every game, you have to give your best every training session. Every day is a test, but this is something that I really love because when all players push each other to be better, the team gets better.
How did you get the opportunity to move to Chonburi?
To be honest, I didn’t play too much in the last part of the season and some important options became available to me. I thought about them deeply and which option could be the best for me at this time. And I decided to choose Chonburi.
Why did you choose to come to Chonburi?
As I said in my presentation to the club, Chonburi is having a magnificent season. They also play attractive football. And the main reason - they really want me here.
What did you know about our club before you came here?
I had really good references for the club, everyone has very good things to say about Chonburi. It is a club that is growing a lot year by year, with a solid infrastructure.
What has impressed you about Chonburi so far?
The welcome from everyone has been very warm. I can’t complain about anything. One other thing that I really like is, they trust in the academy. I love to play with young players.
How have you settled in?
It’s been very easy, to be honest. There are really good guys here, humble and hard working. It's been very easy for me to step in .
What are the biggest differences you've noticed between Buriram Utd and Chonburi?
If we are going direct to the point, the target is the same at Buriram, Chonburi, Lokomotiv Tashkent, Levante or wherever. We try to win games. That’s the target in football, win as much as you can with your methods. There are more similarities than differences around the world.
What are your expectations for the rest of the season?
It would be amazing to finish the league in our current position, but experience has taught me that second rounds are tougher than first one. We will try to give our best. Personally I would like to help the team on and off the pitch to achieve the goals. And add value to the squad.
Which Thai teams have impressed you?
Chonburi is one of them. They are brave, they take risks when they play and they have personality. I like that.
Which players in T1 have impressed you?
It would be a bit unfair to answer, as I play against really good players, but I have also played with some of the best. I saw them every day on the training pitch and it was amazing. There are pivotal Thai players, future Thai talents and key foreigners.
How does the standard of the Thai league compare to other leagues you've played in?
I have played in different countries - Finland, Poland, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain and Uzbekistan - and I can’t compare because every country has something different. I think football is getting better year by year in Thailand and that’s the most important thing, to make progress. You can see national team getting better. League teams are trying to improve their facilities and pitches. There are good Thai players and foreigners. There's still a long way to go, but they are getting there step by step.
Do you have a message for the Chonburi fans?
I’m not a big fan of talking off the field, I like to work hard and do my talking on the pitch. But we are going to try our best every game, to make them feel proud of us. I would like to see every fan going back home happy after every game happy. That’s our target and also responsibility. Let’s fight together, let’s dream together. Going in the same way, we are stronger.
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