Ryuji Sueoka
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Interview of Salgaocar's Ryuji Sueoka
Q. : Congrats Ryuji Sueoka on being I league Champion. What are your feelings?
Ryuji : I feel extremely happy as I have never won the top league title in any countries where I have played before.
Q. : The rumour is that you might be selected as the Best Player of I league?
Ryuji : If it is indeed true, it will give me immense satisfaction, but I am more happy for my team's success. I always give less importance to personal glory compared to success of team.
Q. : Will you say last season was one of the best of your career?
Ryuji : Yes, last season has so far been the best of my career.
Q. : This is your 2nd year in Indian football and already you have got big success. What are the factors which led to Salgaocar's I league triumph?
Ryuji : I have never played in India before. I learnt how to play in India while in Mohun Bagan. I gathered good experience in the 2 years I played in Mohun Bagan. That experience gave me confidence to play well in this league, and this year we played as a team and of course coach, Karim Bencharifa, is a major factor for our triumph. We had a very good preseason camp where we had good communication with each other and our fitness level increased, which are one of the main factors for Salgaocar's major triumph.
Q. : With very few experienced senior players in the team, this is indeed a remarkable achievment for the team. How do you think this became possible?
Ryuji : As I said to you, Karim Bencharifa, our coach, was one of the main factors for our win. Yakubu and Luciano were the only two players who have played in India for many years. They shared their experience and gave good guidence to us and all this helped us to perform well consistently. Also there were a lot of talented young players in Salgaocar. Overall it was a team effort with good tactics and planning from coach which resulted in our I league win.
Q. : After which match, you felt that Salgaocar will become Champion?
Ryuji : I never assumed that we are Champions till the very last match.
Q. : Say something about coach Karim Bencherifa and his role in this I league win?
Ryuji : It would not have been possible to win the I league without him. He had a huge impact in the team. The team was full of young players but coach extracted the best out of every player which helped Salgaocar to produce such a good result.
Q. : Few days back Karim Bencherifa told us that he always prefers to have players like you or Yakubu etc. who are intelligent, is mentally tough and can adapt to different positions. Your take on this?
Ryuji : Yes, that is my strong point that I can play in many positions, but you know my friend, I also have a lot of weak points as well, so this year I will be trying to improve myself during the preseason camp.
Q. : This year, you have played in which positions for Salgaocar?
Ryuji : Basically I played as a second striker, but sometimes I also played as the main striker and attacking midfielder.
Q. : You played many matches in midfield, but still with 18 goals you are the highest scorer for Salgaocar and overall 3rd highest scorer in the league. Do you always have a knack of scoring so many goals or this year has been special for you?
Ryuji : I have scored goals for all the clubs that I have played. This year, I played with Tomba Singh (sometimes Cajetan) and Rocus in Central Midfield. They helped a lot while defending, so that I could concentrate on the attacking part. Then Yakubu, Gilbert, Francis and Antony gave me good assists to score. Also I cannot forget good build up from different players. I mean nobody can play alone in football. It is a team game. I have never got this kind of support in field since I left Japan.
Q. : How are you enjoying Indian football? How many years contract you have made with Salgaocar?
Ryuji : I have one more year contract with Salgaocar. About Indian football, I am really enjoying playing here and I also like the Indian culture. I think I am gaining good experience here in India.
Q. : What went wrong in Mohun Bagan which made you leave the club and move to Salgaocar?
Ryuji : To tell the truth, I felt very comfortable in Mohun Bagan for my 1st season in India. Even, I wanted to stay in this club for more seasons. But then they made contract with 3 foreign strikers before finish of 2009-2010. If I extended contract with Mohun Bagan, they would have had 4 attacking foreigners. I felt it would not be good tactics wise for a team. I don't know if my opinion is correct or not, as there is no such correct rule in football for success, but that is the main reason why I left Mohun Bagan.
Q. : At the start of this year, you said that you wanted to be part of a team which wants to become Champion, so you moved to Salgaocar. You sounded very disappointed about last season?
Ryuji : No, I was not that disappointed last season. We got Kolkata League title and won many important matches. I had very good memories of Kolkata, but this year was very special for me.
Q. : What is the difference between football in Bengal and Goa?
Ryuji : I don't think there is much difference, both the states are leading Indian football. I hope they help each other which will help raise the standard of Indian football more.
Q. : What are the factors due to which Goan teams are consistently performing better in I league over the last few years?
Ryuji : If you ask me this question, really I don't know the factors. It is not possible for a club to get good result forever, even Barcelona will not get success every year. So if Kolkata Clubs do good planning, they will also get good success in future.
Q. : Do you think playing in front of packed galleries in Kolkata puts pressure on players or it brings the best out of the players?
Ryuji : Yes, I felt pressure so much from packed galleries, but I think this is not negative pressure, this pressure made me concentrate more and excited and helped me to perform better. In a way, I can say, this pressure brought the best out of me.
Q. : Is there any chance of Sueoka coming back to Kolkata in future?
Ryuji : How can I tell what will happen in future? Right now, I am concentrating on the coming season for Salgaocar, but I will always have good memories of Kolkata in my mind.
Q. : Since you operate mostly down the flanks (both left and right side), which side you prefer to play more?
Ryuji : I can kick and dribble with both legs, so don't care about which side. I can play in both right and left flank.
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.kolkatafootball.com/indiafootball_news_2011/july15thpart_2011.html#Ryuji_Sueoka">http://www.kolkatafootball.com/indiafoo ... uji_Sueoka</a><!-- m -->
Q. : Congrats Ryuji Sueoka on being I league Champion. What are your feelings?
Ryuji : I feel extremely happy as I have never won the top league title in any countries where I have played before.
Q. : The rumour is that you might be selected as the Best Player of I league?
Ryuji : If it is indeed true, it will give me immense satisfaction, but I am more happy for my team's success. I always give less importance to personal glory compared to success of team.
Q. : Will you say last season was one of the best of your career?
Ryuji : Yes, last season has so far been the best of my career.
Q. : This is your 2nd year in Indian football and already you have got big success. What are the factors which led to Salgaocar's I league triumph?
Ryuji : I have never played in India before. I learnt how to play in India while in Mohun Bagan. I gathered good experience in the 2 years I played in Mohun Bagan. That experience gave me confidence to play well in this league, and this year we played as a team and of course coach, Karim Bencharifa, is a major factor for our triumph. We had a very good preseason camp where we had good communication with each other and our fitness level increased, which are one of the main factors for Salgaocar's major triumph.
Q. : With very few experienced senior players in the team, this is indeed a remarkable achievment for the team. How do you think this became possible?
Ryuji : As I said to you, Karim Bencharifa, our coach, was one of the main factors for our win. Yakubu and Luciano were the only two players who have played in India for many years. They shared their experience and gave good guidence to us and all this helped us to perform well consistently. Also there were a lot of talented young players in Salgaocar. Overall it was a team effort with good tactics and planning from coach which resulted in our I league win.
Q. : After which match, you felt that Salgaocar will become Champion?
Ryuji : I never assumed that we are Champions till the very last match.
Q. : Say something about coach Karim Bencherifa and his role in this I league win?
Ryuji : It would not have been possible to win the I league without him. He had a huge impact in the team. The team was full of young players but coach extracted the best out of every player which helped Salgaocar to produce such a good result.
Q. : Few days back Karim Bencherifa told us that he always prefers to have players like you or Yakubu etc. who are intelligent, is mentally tough and can adapt to different positions. Your take on this?
Ryuji : Yes, that is my strong point that I can play in many positions, but you know my friend, I also have a lot of weak points as well, so this year I will be trying to improve myself during the preseason camp.
Q. : This year, you have played in which positions for Salgaocar?
Ryuji : Basically I played as a second striker, but sometimes I also played as the main striker and attacking midfielder.
Q. : You played many matches in midfield, but still with 18 goals you are the highest scorer for Salgaocar and overall 3rd highest scorer in the league. Do you always have a knack of scoring so many goals or this year has been special for you?
Ryuji : I have scored goals for all the clubs that I have played. This year, I played with Tomba Singh (sometimes Cajetan) and Rocus in Central Midfield. They helped a lot while defending, so that I could concentrate on the attacking part. Then Yakubu, Gilbert, Francis and Antony gave me good assists to score. Also I cannot forget good build up from different players. I mean nobody can play alone in football. It is a team game. I have never got this kind of support in field since I left Japan.
Q. : How are you enjoying Indian football? How many years contract you have made with Salgaocar?
Ryuji : I have one more year contract with Salgaocar. About Indian football, I am really enjoying playing here and I also like the Indian culture. I think I am gaining good experience here in India.
Q. : What went wrong in Mohun Bagan which made you leave the club and move to Salgaocar?
Ryuji : To tell the truth, I felt very comfortable in Mohun Bagan for my 1st season in India. Even, I wanted to stay in this club for more seasons. But then they made contract with 3 foreign strikers before finish of 2009-2010. If I extended contract with Mohun Bagan, they would have had 4 attacking foreigners. I felt it would not be good tactics wise for a team. I don't know if my opinion is correct or not, as there is no such correct rule in football for success, but that is the main reason why I left Mohun Bagan.
Q. : At the start of this year, you said that you wanted to be part of a team which wants to become Champion, so you moved to Salgaocar. You sounded very disappointed about last season?
Ryuji : No, I was not that disappointed last season. We got Kolkata League title and won many important matches. I had very good memories of Kolkata, but this year was very special for me.
Q. : What is the difference between football in Bengal and Goa?
Ryuji : I don't think there is much difference, both the states are leading Indian football. I hope they help each other which will help raise the standard of Indian football more.
Q. : What are the factors due to which Goan teams are consistently performing better in I league over the last few years?
Ryuji : If you ask me this question, really I don't know the factors. It is not possible for a club to get good result forever, even Barcelona will not get success every year. So if Kolkata Clubs do good planning, they will also get good success in future.
Q. : Do you think playing in front of packed galleries in Kolkata puts pressure on players or it brings the best out of the players?
Ryuji : Yes, I felt pressure so much from packed galleries, but I think this is not negative pressure, this pressure made me concentrate more and excited and helped me to perform better. In a way, I can say, this pressure brought the best out of me.
Q. : Is there any chance of Sueoka coming back to Kolkata in future?
Ryuji : How can I tell what will happen in future? Right now, I am concentrating on the coming season for Salgaocar, but I will always have good memories of Kolkata in my mind.
Q. : Since you operate mostly down the flanks (both left and right side), which side you prefer to play more?
Ryuji : I can kick and dribble with both legs, so don't care about which side. I can play in both right and left flank.
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