Interview with the first Winner

The RMI interviewee is the prized winner of a VIP award for the last undefeated team of the season – ThunderCats FC´s Meelas!"

Q: You pushed and shoved your way passed, among others, Potsdamerplatz who was very nearly on his way to win his own VIP prize. You can´t relax though as you have the better part of the season left, but it looks like ThunderCats are go?

A:To be honest i was unaware of the competition and was very surprised when i received the award...I guess it was better not knowing though ...my focus is to win the league and my team are in great shape..so yes I'll be looking forward to carrying them all the way again. Potsdamerplatz should have maybe waited one more match day seeing tomorrow im playing my nightmare..

Q: You have a fantastic player in Nélson Queimado. The 23 year old pourtuguese has scored an unbelievable 24 goals in his career for ThunderCats which puts him up there with midfield legend Horácio Metelo of Totaalvoetbal who has scored 27 goals but at an age of 38. But this so far unbeaten season has seen 10 different players scoring for your team including, of all people, your first-choice goalkeeper Carlos Magro after a penalty against New York City. It must be a great feeling that so many players can step up to the plate and produce goals so to speak?

A:Oh yes, Nelson is a joy to have, a gift to the team and is definitely our talisman. I see him as the Lionel Messi of Barcelona. But we all know that there is no 'I' in TEAM, some may say there is a 'M' and an 'E' but this is definitely not so in the ThunderCats. I'm glad to have a bunch of players that i can always depend on. Carlos Magro is my main keeper and when Juliano Liete, one of the older players, is unavailable, his cool takes our penalties.

Q: You took over the club after a few weeks of its existance but after eight months you have only made five purchases yet you are the third strongest squad in the whole of RM invitational. The number of purchases are roughly a third of what other teams have to show for. Is this directly connected to the fact that you have had very little money coming in from transfers (only 800.000 econ overall) or is it a way of coaching for you - to patiently see what fits your squad? The amount of money you keep lying around points at the latter.

A: Money has never been the problem for my team. I was fortunate to be given a great team at the start so no huge changes had to be made. Chemistry is a huge advantage for a team. When a group of players play and know each other they play better football so i see it unnecessary to bring in a huge no. of new players all at once. However this might have not been the case if i was given a poor team. I would have definitely sell and rebuild.

Q: Despite the last couple of weeks´ results, Totaalvoetbal v. ThunderCats F.C is always a huge crowd pleaser and a bit of a classic encounter in the RM invitational. RobinMeeblind has responded in turn by buying one of the leagues most talented defenders to try to stop your winning ways. Any thoughts on tomorrows fixture?

A: Hahaha..I must say Robinmeeblind is one of the managers i look forward to playing. He always give me a competition and always has the upper hand:s..Tomorrow is a day i look forward to. It wont be a normal match day. Its Definitely a Classico. To be honest i will be pleased with even an away draw. But my team have grown since our last encounter..wait..and so did his:s..hmm..Robin i wish u the best tomorrow but i hope my team wins:D whether it be the better team or not. :p

Q: Your biggest loss was back in 2008 when you lost to Reggae Reggae Sauce 4-0 which is not a lot. How would you react to a 6-1 loss?

A: Well a 6-1 loss is just as bad as a 5-0 , 4-0 or 3-0 loss, with one difference...my team was able to score a consolidation goal..Nevertheless A huge loss is the same as ..a huge loss...and i will be amazed if my team can conjure up a loss like that...however i will just see it as one loss and would definitely try my best to manage better the next time around..

I and the rest of the RMI team wish you all the best as you keep raising the bar for what can be achieved with more brains and luck than desperate transfers and luck! Thanks patrik and all the best to you in this, my favourite league