A good year ago Javi Martínez’s life fundamentally changed. The Spaniard became a father for the first time. In the second part of his interview, the 29 year-old talked about this as well as Jupp Heynckes and the challenges ahead on the pitch.
Interview with Javi Martínez, part 2
You’ve had to take a few hits this season: at Celtic you suffered a deep cut, and a few weeks before you injured your shoulder. Are you still having problems particularly with the shoulder?
Martínez: “The shoulder injury wasn’t serious but it was very painful. After that I played through the pain, sometimes with painkillers. But it wasn’t too bad. It can happen in football.”
You son Luca is now one year old. Are injuries twice as painful when you’re a father?
Martínez: “The pain is one thing. But do you know what the worst thing about the shoulder injury was? Not being able to hold Luca in my arms during that time. That was hard for me.”
How has having a son changed your life?
Martínez: “He’s changed everything. I see life, the world, differently now. Luca is the most important thing for me, everything’s for him. Parents will understand what I mean. I feel the responsibility. For example, if someone asked me whether I’d like to do skydiving, before I had Luca I would have said: definitely! But now I have to think twice about things like that because of Luca. What if something happened to me?”
How much of an influence has Jupp Heynckes had on your career?
Martínez: “He’s influenced my career significantly. I played at Bilbao. They’re a great club, the most special club in the world for me because it’s only formed of people from the region. But Jupp Heynckes worked very hard to get me to come to Munich.”
What’s his return been like for you?
Martínez: “No one could have known what four years away from football had done to Jupp. Now I know: he’s stayed the same. He still has his personality, he always knows exactly when to tighten the reins. The big difference is that I now understand him a lot better than before because my German has got better.” (laughs)
Jupp Heynckes came back and you won nine games in a row. What he’s done with you?
Martínez: “Training is very good. We’re behind him and he’s behind us, and we need to continue that way. It’s only November and everything can change again. It can happen very quickly in football, which there are lots of examples of. We must stay focused and work hard every day.”
Your next opponents are Hannover on Saturday. How are you going into this game after the defeat at Gladbach?
Martínez: “It’s obviously an important game. We need to be very focused and put them under pressure straight away. A win would be very important for us.”
Then it’s the rematch against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League. How much is that in the back of your mind?
Martínez: “All that’s on my mind is Hannover. After Hannover I’ll think about Paris. I think that’s the key to success – to take it game by game. Otherwise you won’t be 100% focused.”
Is it still possible to win the group in the Champions League?
Martínez: “Obviously it’s going to be very difficult. We have to beat PSG by four goals. But we’re Bayern, we’ll fight and give everything. Plus I don’t know whether it’s that important to finish first. We want to get to the final in Kiev, and to do that you have to beat every team you face in the New Year, regardless of whether you finish first or second.”
Click here for part 1 of the interview.
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