Recently, Manchester City’s key center-back Rúben Dias talked about various topics regarding the club’s Premier League title challenge this season in an interview.
When asked about his views on the performance over the past 12 months
Dias said: “Whether you win or lose, you always reflect. And there’s always something to learn. There are always factors you need to keep improving – constantly evolving to stay at the top level. But undoubtedly, the entire difficult period last season was a crucial moment.
“I embrace these moments wholeheartedly because they are part of a player’s career. They are part of football, and you can only look at them with a positive attitude, as they only make you better and drive you to grow.
“That was a phase of significant progress, and as always, with each passing year, we strive for more improvement. Of course, it was a period of reconstruction – many players left, and many new ones joined.
“Clearly, now more than ever, we need to clarify our team culture and our way of doing things, so that new signings can quickly understand where they stand and how they can help us.
“In terms of individual performance, in other words, everyone has their own characteristics and ways of thinking. But ultimately, we all have to find ways to create the greatest possible value for the team. For the team. In this sense, I feel that as one of the captains and leaders of the team, you and we are responsible for clarifying what is crucial – the things that are indispensable to our team.
“I think we are getting better and better at this. From this perspective, everyone knows how to best contribute to the team. I think we are in good form now, but I also believe we have a lot of room for improvement.”
When talking about the competition between Man City and leaders Arsenal, as well as the challenge from teams like Aston Villa and Chelsea
Dias added: “The situation is obviously tight. Even putting aside the teams outside the top three, the gap between the lower-ranked teams is very small. I know we are almost halfway through the season, but it’s still early days. We have to keep winning and keep working hard in training. We have to keep progressing as a team.
“I think as a team, we still have a lot of room to grow. In the end, we’ll do the math (on results).
“We know how difficult it is to play there (against Crystal Palace this round), but I think we are in very good form now, and I believe we can get even better. If we are currently performing at 70% with 30% room for improvement, or 80% with 20% left – whatever the exact figure – I think we can be even better.
“It’s good to have this feeling at this stage of the season. We still have a few gears to shift up. But I admit, right now I feel we are strong, and I think we have the quality to compete. They (Arsenal) have always been a dangerous team – they have outstanding players in their squad.
“Despite the high turnover of their players, they are still dangerous, so we are well aware of what kind of game we are facing. We want to go there and do what we need to do. They obviously defend well – it’s not easy to break down their defensive structure. They are also always dangerous in transition moments.”
When talking about Arsenal again
“We know Arsenal’s strength – they have a very strong squad and an excellent manager. But it all depends on us. We have the best manager in the world, and he does an incredible job every day. You can sense his passion for the game, his love for the players and his coaching staff, and we know he will take us further in pursuit of the league title. What we truly focus on is what we can do, not Arsenal’s performance. For us, every game is like a final.”
