Alan Varela on Benfica’s undroppable starter: “We’ve always had...” | OneFootball

One month after being crowned national champion with Porto, Alan Varela looked back on the rivalries between the Dragons and their other direct rivals. In an interview with the Argentine press, the defensive midfielder also spoke about Nicolás Otamendi, captain of Benfica, describing the relationship he has with the 38-year-old footballer.

“Nico and I have always had the best [relationship], on and off the pitch. We have always been respectful to each other. Obviously, it’s a derby and, on the pitch, you leave everything out there, but beyond that, nothing happens,” said Porto’s defensive midfielder about the Argentine, who is still at Seixal before heading to the World Cup.

“This year we did well in all those matches, we didn’t lose against any of the big teams,” Varela said, recalling the Dragons’ title-winning campaign. “I was very happy to be able to win some derbies and, in others, not lose them, so that we could come out as champions,” added the 24-year-old midfielder in comments to La Nación.

“I’m calm and 100% focused here at Porto. All those matters are obviously discussed by my agent and, at this moment, I’m not thinking about that,” the footballer assured, stating that he is only thinking about the blue and whites. “To be able to be on the World Cup list,” added the Argentine.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.