Angielski (ENG) 
Polski (PL) 
Once a Blaugrana fan, always a Blaugrana fan
Andrzej Smyk: Hi Razvan, HEurekians know you as the coordinator of youth projects from Romanian Resita. Do you remember when we met for the first time?
Razvan Rotariu: I remember the first time I met you, for about 5 minutes, when you came to pick up the Polish Group from my very first youth exchange. This was back in 2013, in Hungary, in the little town of Visegrad. The project name was 'Guardians of Europe'.
2 weeks later, we officially met on the first training course, which took place also in Hungary in Zebegeny, organized by our common partner Association Co-Efficient. It was a 8 or 9 day training course and we didn’t talk more than 2 words, until the very last night of the project, when together with one of my Italian roommates and you were talking about football.
3 months later, we met again on a training course in Romania and from there on out, it’s been an almost 8 year friendship.
Razvan Rotariu: I remember the first time I met you, for about 5 minutes, when you came to pick up the Polish Group from my very first youth exchange. This was back in 2013, in Hungary, in the little town of Visegrad. The project name was 'Guardians of Europe'.
2 weeks later, we officially met on the first training course, which took place also in Hungary in Zebegeny, organized by our common partner Association Co-Efficient. It was a 8 or 9 day training course and we didn’t talk more than 2 words, until the very last night of the project, when together with one of my Italian roommates and you were talking about football.
3 months later, we met again on a training course in Romania and from there on out, it’s been an almost 8 year friendship.
AS: Were you already a FC Barcelona fan then? How did it start?
RR: I have been a FC Barcelona fan since 2002 (when I was 10 or 11), became a fan while playing Fifa 2002. The only reason I chose them was because one of my first memories of a football game was the game Netherlands – Yugoslavia played in Euro 2000. Netherlands crushed the Yugoslav team and they had this one striker that was incredible in that game. His name was Patrick Kluivert, who at the time was playing for Barcelona.
From there on out, I was hooked, through the Ronaldinho, Deco and Giuly years, to the Messi decade and so on. Nowadays, it’s not the easiest thing to be a FC Barcelona fan, but still, once a Blaugrana fan, always a Blaugrana fan.
RR: I have been a FC Barcelona fan since 2002 (when I was 10 or 11), became a fan while playing Fifa 2002. The only reason I chose them was because one of my first memories of a football game was the game Netherlands – Yugoslavia played in Euro 2000. Netherlands crushed the Yugoslav team and they had this one striker that was incredible in that game. His name was Patrick Kluivert, who at the time was playing for Barcelona.
From there on out, I was hooked, through the Ronaldinho, Deco and Giuly years, to the Messi decade and so on. Nowadays, it’s not the easiest thing to be a FC Barcelona fan, but still, once a Blaugrana fan, always a Blaugrana fan.
AS: Do you watch all the matches?
RR: I used to. Nowadays, I don’t catch every single game they play, especially in La Liga, but I make time as often as possible. For Uefa Champions League and the derby games I watch them all, for the rest, I have my notifications turned on my Flashscore app, so I still don’t miss any goals.
AS: And the best game ever was...?
RR: There have been so many through the years, especially in the Pep Guardiola period. But I still remember every UCL final that Barca played since I became a fan. The one in 2006, when we were one goal down to Arsenal and then they managed to turn the game around, the final in 2009 when Messi flew and scored with a header against Manchester United (he even lost his shoe when he jumped), the final in 2011 when, with the exception of Rooney’s goal, the game was in Barca’s favor and the final in 2015 against Juventus, with Neymar scoring in the last minutes for the final score 3-1.
RR: I used to. Nowadays, I don’t catch every single game they play, especially in La Liga, but I make time as often as possible. For Uefa Champions League and the derby games I watch them all, for the rest, I have my notifications turned on my Flashscore app, so I still don’t miss any goals.
AS: And the best game ever was...?
RR: There have been so many through the years, especially in the Pep Guardiola period. But I still remember every UCL final that Barca played since I became a fan. The one in 2006, when we were one goal down to Arsenal and then they managed to turn the game around, the final in 2009 when Messi flew and scored with a header against Manchester United (he even lost his shoe when he jumped), the final in 2011 when, with the exception of Rooney’s goal, the game was in Barca’s favor and the final in 2015 against Juventus, with Neymar scoring in the last minutes for the final score 3-1.
Also the one I remember having the most confidence before the game when the Remontada against PSG happened for 6-1, I remember running around the house like crazy when Sergi Roberto scored the last goal.. And a fun one, the game against Bayern in UCL on Camp Nou, with 3-0, goals scored only in the last 20 minutes of the game. I still remember Boateng falling when Messi dribbled. I still have the games on my laptop, all 4 finals and the ones against PSG and Bayern.
But there are also the games I love to hate, like the game against Chelsea in UCL in 2005, when on Stamford Bridge Chelsea managed to score 3 goals against us in 15 minutes and Ronaldinho also scored a goal like in kindergarten, with the tip of his shoe, but it wasn’t enough, we lost 4-2; or the game against Inter when Mourinho came to Camp Nou with a defensive team. Actually Bojan Krkic managed to score the qualification goal in the 94th minute, but they called a foul from Pique and Barcelona missed the chance to play the UCL final on Santiago Bernabeu in 2010. Or the more recent awful games, against Roma, Liverpool, Bayern and even more recent PSG this year. Makes me miss the good years.
AS: Which period in the history of the club do you consider the best (from the time when you have already watched matches) and why?
RR: I mean there were 2 very different periods in my mind. The first one I remember clearly was the team created by Rijkaard, with Ronaldinho at its center. I remember there were talks about bringing Beckham, but he chose Real Madrid, so we had to settle for Ronaldinho. Best settlement ever. It was a period of chaos somehow, because back then, the team with Deco, Giuly, Etoo, Puyol, Marquez, all of them, great players but I never felt they were dominating in every game. It was always a roller coaster, when they won they did it great, when they lost they did it great (that’s why I still remember those games).
RR: I mean there were 2 very different periods in my mind. The first one I remember clearly was the team created by Rijkaard, with Ronaldinho at its center. I remember there were talks about bringing Beckham, but he chose Real Madrid, so we had to settle for Ronaldinho. Best settlement ever. It was a period of chaos somehow, because back then, the team with Deco, Giuly, Etoo, Puyol, Marquez, all of them, great players but I never felt they were dominating in every game. It was always a roller coaster, when they won they did it great, when they lost they did it great (that’s why I still remember those games).
And then came the Pep revolution. I didn’t know much about Pep Guardiola, I remember he lost his first game and finished in a draw in his second, so the hopes were pretty low. But the rest is history, and their style of play, was in my mind, amazing. It was a great group of players and you could feel it even in the National Teams, with Spain wining Euro 2008, WC 2010 and Euro 2012, with more than half the team coming from Barcelona. Later on, not to take away from Luis Enrique’s credit and the 2015 win in UCL, the team was already cemented around those players (Pique, Busquets, Iniesta, Xavi and Messi), so when they added Neymar, Luis Suarez, Rakitic, they all clicked. I wish to have seen the Cruyff team, with their win in 1992, but in my mind, the Barcelona of 2009-2011 was the strongest I have ever seen.
AS: If you are Barca fan, do you have to 'dislike' Real Madrid?
RR: I don’t have to dislike, but I do feel happy when they lose. Fun fact, back in 2005-2008, I was a much bigger fan of Cristiano Ronaldo than Lionel Messi. I mean Messi was great, he was growing, Barcelona team was going through a change, but Cristiano was amazing. I even had a wallpaper on my computer with him at Manchester United. That all changed when he signed for Real in 2009. Nowadays, I am just happy I got to see the 2 play for so many years at such a high level. When it comes to Real Madrid, I think it got worse, my dislike, since Mourinho came to Real Madrid and all that nastiness that he put in the derby. I still think that Atetico deserved to win at least one of the UCL finals against Real and for sure Liverpool, if it weren’t for Karius, were a much better team that season. But that comes back to the impact that Cristiano had on Real Madrid in those years. As you can see, once he left, Real is not the same team and also Messi is not the same player anymore. The rivarly helped Messi much more than it helped Cristiano.
RR: I don’t have to dislike, but I do feel happy when they lose. Fun fact, back in 2005-2008, I was a much bigger fan of Cristiano Ronaldo than Lionel Messi. I mean Messi was great, he was growing, Barcelona team was going through a change, but Cristiano was amazing. I even had a wallpaper on my computer with him at Manchester United. That all changed when he signed for Real in 2009. Nowadays, I am just happy I got to see the 2 play for so many years at such a high level. When it comes to Real Madrid, I think it got worse, my dislike, since Mourinho came to Real Madrid and all that nastiness that he put in the derby. I still think that Atetico deserved to win at least one of the UCL finals against Real and for sure Liverpool, if it weren’t for Karius, were a much better team that season. But that comes back to the impact that Cristiano had on Real Madrid in those years. As you can see, once he left, Real is not the same team and also Messi is not the same player anymore. The rivarly helped Messi much more than it helped Cristiano.
AS: The Polish club managed to win with Barca only once. Do you know any historic games between Barcelona and a Romanian club that are still discussed in Romania today?
RR: I mean, I am the worst Romanian from this point of view, because the biggest football success of a Romanian club came against FC Barcelona, when Steaua Bucuresti won the final of Champions Cup (former UCL) in 1986, with Dukadam defending 4 penalties in the shootout. I still hear the comentators yelling 'Apara Dukadam!' (which means 'Dukadam saves the penalty'). It’s always discussed in Romania, especially on the anniversary of the game, every year on 7th of May, when they always show the game. It’s like 'Home Alone' on Christmas. Ironically, I have never seen the game, just the shootout. Later in the 90s, 2 of our Romanian big players played for Barcelona, Popescu, who was also the captain of FC Barcelona for I think 2 seasons and Gica Hagi.
RR: I mean, I am the worst Romanian from this point of view, because the biggest football success of a Romanian club came against FC Barcelona, when Steaua Bucuresti won the final of Champions Cup (former UCL) in 1986, with Dukadam defending 4 penalties in the shootout. I still hear the comentators yelling 'Apara Dukadam!' (which means 'Dukadam saves the penalty'). It’s always discussed in Romania, especially on the anniversary of the game, every year on 7th of May, when they always show the game. It’s like 'Home Alone' on Christmas. Ironically, I have never seen the game, just the shootout. Later in the 90s, 2 of our Romanian big players played for Barcelona, Popescu, who was also the captain of FC Barcelona for I think 2 seasons and Gica Hagi.
AS: Every true fan has to make a pilgrimage to Camp Nou. You were already there. Tell us about it.
RR: It was really a dream come true. We got to visit the whole stadium for about 4 hours. The marketing of the place is incredible; I even got to take a picture with the UCL trophy from the stands wearing my custom made T-shirt. It was the summer after the last trophy won by Barcelona. I still have the T-shirt, unfortunately, I was much skinnier back in 2015. But still, I want to go back to actually catch an El Clasico from the stands, so there are still memories to be made at that stadium.
RR: It was really a dream come true. We got to visit the whole stadium for about 4 hours. The marketing of the place is incredible; I even got to take a picture with the UCL trophy from the stands wearing my custom made T-shirt. It was the summer after the last trophy won by Barcelona. I still have the T-shirt, unfortunately, I was much skinnier back in 2015. But still, I want to go back to actually catch an El Clasico from the stands, so there are still memories to be made at that stadium.
AS: If you had a choice in the Barça team to have Stoichkov and Romario again instead of Messi, would you agree or Messi is irreplaceable?
RR: Well, having not seen them play, I don’t know how I could ever compare them, but what Messi managed to do (with a lot of help from Xavi and Iniesta) I don’t think could be or will be done any time soon again. With Messi in the team, Barcelona went from one UCL to 5 trophy wins. And in La Liga, in the past 16 years, Barca have won 10 titles. But I am excited to see what’s in store for the young ones coming now, Ansu Fati, Pedri, Eric Garcia, Mingueza, they have talent, they will just need a good coach.
AS: And if FC Barcelona did not exist and you would have to cheer for another club, it would be...
RR: If you would have asked me this until 2012, it was for sure Manchester United, but once Sir Alex Ferguson left, it’s never been the same again. And since then, if it’s not FC Barcelona, there is no football to me.
AS: Finally, a task for you. List the names of Polish footballers you know without looking on the internet and without checking the spelling of their names.
RR: I will spell them as bad as I can. The first one that comes to my mind and it will always be this way is Dudek. His dance in the penalty shootout against Milan is still one of the best things ever (that Liverpool final was and is one of the best games I have ever seen as a fan). Then it’s Lewandovski for his 4 goals against Real Madrid when he was in Dortmund. The others that come to mind are: Boruc, Blasikowski, Milik, Piszcek, Sczesny, Fabianski, Piatek (which for some reason is read as Piontek). I don’t know what was with all the goalkeepers; at one point each big team in England had a Polish goalkeeper somewhere in the team.
RR: Well, having not seen them play, I don’t know how I could ever compare them, but what Messi managed to do (with a lot of help from Xavi and Iniesta) I don’t think could be or will be done any time soon again. With Messi in the team, Barcelona went from one UCL to 5 trophy wins. And in La Liga, in the past 16 years, Barca have won 10 titles. But I am excited to see what’s in store for the young ones coming now, Ansu Fati, Pedri, Eric Garcia, Mingueza, they have talent, they will just need a good coach.
AS: And if FC Barcelona did not exist and you would have to cheer for another club, it would be...
RR: If you would have asked me this until 2012, it was for sure Manchester United, but once Sir Alex Ferguson left, it’s never been the same again. And since then, if it’s not FC Barcelona, there is no football to me.
AS: Finally, a task for you. List the names of Polish footballers you know without looking on the internet and without checking the spelling of their names.
RR: I will spell them as bad as I can. The first one that comes to my mind and it will always be this way is Dudek. His dance in the penalty shootout against Milan is still one of the best things ever (that Liverpool final was and is one of the best games I have ever seen as a fan). Then it’s Lewandovski for his 4 goals against Real Madrid when he was in Dortmund. The others that come to mind are: Boruc, Blasikowski, Milik, Piszcek, Sczesny, Fabianski, Piatek (which for some reason is read as Piontek). I don’t know what was with all the goalkeepers; at one point each big team in England had a Polish goalkeeper somewhere in the team.
AS: Thank you for the interview and see you at work ;-)
