As requested: Pre-Liverpool Interview with Krisztian Nemeth

Hope you enjoy it Z.

The interview is dated 14-12-2006 and was done by Spanish paper Marca.

Krisztian Nemeth: “Puskas was one of a kind and it’s impossible to compare him to anybody else”



Lacking the key figures to idolize ever since the great Florian Albert’s (Golden Ball winner in 1967) career came to a sour end, Hungarian football is eager to recuperate part of its former glories at the hand of Krisztian Nemeth, a lean striker who at 17 years of age is already causing awe with his virtuoso style of play and his high goal-scoring ability inside of the enemy area.

Peter Varhidi, the Hungarian coach, compares him to Trezeguet. A much more grounded comparison for Krisztian himself, than the praise he is receiving from his other fellow countrymen. “No Hungarian player, no matter how good he is, can ever be compared to Puskas because he was one of a kind. He is an idol for all of us who are only getting started in football. I would consider myself very satisfied if I’m able to achieve in my entire career only a fourth part of what he accomplished, although it makes me very proud that people think of me as his heir”, he tells Marca from his home in Budapest.

Are there any similarities to Puskas in the way you play?

- Perhaps the only similarity is that I'm also a goalscorer, although I am right footed and a bit leaner.

Which one of your qualities would you highlight?

- I’m good on the ball. Opposing players have a hard time taking it away from me. My dribbling is good also. I’m not very fast, but I have good acceleration and I’m explosive over a short distance. I would classify myself as a creative striker.

Thinking of a hypothetical exit to a foreign country, Which football do you like the most?

- My style would probably be best suited to Latin football. In Spain or Italy. My dream is to play in the Spanish league and follow Puskas’s steps at Real Madrid. It would be very hard to describe the joy that would mean for me to wear that shirt and to be only the second Hungarian player to do so after him.

Do you have any idols right now?

- Del Piero. Zidane also. And as a striker, I try to emulate Ronaldo. He’s the best.

What are your objectives in the short term?

First, to recover from the injury that I’m carrying. I hope to score many goals with my team and with the Hungarian U-19’s in the upcoming Eurpean Championship in Ireland, although my main goal is to debut with the Hungarian national team at some point.