Real Madrid

Klaas-Jan Huntelaar gave his first press conference as a Real Madrid player after his presentation on the pitch.

How do you feel from your injury?
I don’t feel much pain. I’m not in optimum form yet, but I think I’ll be fully recovered in a couple of weeks.

How do you think you’ll adapt to the team, given that you are in a different country and will have to speak a different language?
I think my adaptation will be rather smooth because there are many Dutch players on the team, several of which I know from when they played at Ajax. This will make it easier than having to adapt to a team in which you know nobody. I still haven’t thought much about it. I’ll see how things unfold and I will ask for help if I need some.

Do you realise what it means to sign for Real Madrid?
Everything’s happened very quickly and the impact this has had on me has been huge. Real Madrid is the greatest club in the world and I am proud of being here. I naturally have to learn more about what it means to be here, but this is a great moment nonetheless.

Are you aware of Real Madrid’s current situation? You have arrived as the team’s saviour...
As I said before, Real Madrid is the greatest club in the world and we’ll have to do our best to make a comeback. We have to work very hard at it.

You won the Bronze Boot last year thanks to the amazing number of goals you scored in Holland, but some may think it won’t be like that over here because the Spanish league is regarded as being better. What would you like to say to dispel these doubts?
It’s true that the Spanish league is slightly better than the Eredivisie. I’ll have to adapt to it by playing with better players. It has to be done and I think I’ll manage to do so well.

The President recently said that any new signings wouldn’t be starters at first. What do you expect to do this year?
I’ve spoken to many people about this and I’ve had great feedback on what is expected of me. They really want me to be here. I was going to join the team at the end of the season at first, but injuries have changed this. I’ll have to fight hard for a spot on the team.

Van Basten didn’t want you to sign for Real Madrid this summer. What has made it possible for you to come now?
Apparently there were some problems with Ajax last year, but contact between both clubs was re-established. I don’t really know how things came about, but I’m very happy with being here today.

People regard you as Van Nistelrooy’s successor. What do you think of that? Would you like to tell us how many goals you’d like to score this year?
Ruud is injured, but he is a fantastic player. I’m a different sort of striker and will try my best. I’ll try to score as many goals as I possibly can.

What do you think of the current fight between Real Madrid and Barcelona and about the latter’s style?
Their rivalry is known by everyone. Barcelona are currently leaders in the league and we’ll have to fight very hard to be champions at the end of the campaign.

Which players on the squad would you highlight?
It’s very hard because they are all very good, but I played with Wesley Sneijder at Ajax and on the Dutch national team. He was already good back then, but he’s improved a lot. I also know Ruud and Robben, and like Raúl, Casillas... This is a very good team.