Brazilian defender Willyan has been one of the main bright spots at CSKA. The 28-year-old conquered space at the club and also own the first title of his career there.
“For me it was a unique feeling to be champion in my first season at the club. It was also my first title playing outside of Brazil, so it will always be remembered for me. I hope this feeling is repeated on other occasions, perhaps this season,” he told Sambafoot in an exclusive interview.
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Willyan, you left Brazil again to have an experience abroad. How have these years been?
It has been a very positive experience to have the opportunity to work outside Brazil in different countries and also get to know other cultures, languages and cities. I lived for several years in Portugal, a country for which I have enormous affection, and now in Russia I also feel at home and I have adapted very well.
Did you experience any difficulties or experience anything unusual?
The beginning is always complicated, especially when you leave your home country and arrive in another without knowing the people and places. In Portugal, both because of the language and the climate, adaptation was easier. In Russia I had a bit of difficulty due to the language and the cold, but I received all the support from the club to make my adaptation happen in the best possible way.
You found yourself in CSKA and are deservedly a starter in the team. To what do you owe this success?
True, since my arrival at the club I have managed to establish myself as a starter and have a sequence of games to show my football to the fans. In Portugal I was already doing a good job at Portimonense and arriving here at CSKA I was able to continue. I adapted to the coach’s philosophy, I got along well with my teammates and thank God I’ve been able to do a good job. I hope to continue evolving with each game to reach increasingly higher levels of performance.
How has life been in Russia over the last year, with everything involving the invasion of Ukraine? Has the gaming routine changed? Or everyday life?
We try not to get too involved in this topic, it’s up to us to just work day to day and do our best for CSKA.
You received inquiries from some teams here in Brazil, but you preferred to leave it there. Why? Can you talk about some of the teams that approached you?
Yes, I received some surveys and proposals in the last transfer window, but talking to my agents we understood that the best thing would be to continue the work done here at CSKA. Some Brazilian and European clubs approached me and I’m very happy for the recognition of my work, but at the moment my focus is here at the club
And what are the objectives for this season?
The objectives when we defend a club the size of CSKA is always to be champions. We enter every championship with the aim of winning titles and bringing joy to our fans. We didn’t start so well in the local championship, we are aware of that, but I’m sure that soon we will fit in and fight until the end for this achievement.
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