EXCLUSIVE: Pastore on working with Maradona, his love for PSG and his time in Italy

Javier Pastore is, in Maradona's own words, a "football brute" on the pitch, due to his natural way of dominating the ball. On the phone, on the other hand, he is extremely polite and cheerful.

And in this exclusive interview with Flashscore, ahead of a meeting with Paris fans scheduled for early November, he looks back on his career, which began in sunny Palermo, when Maradona himself called him up for the 2010 World Cup to play alongside Lionel Messi, before culminating in a move to Paris Saint Germain.

Javier, you'll soon be in Paris to meet up with the fans, the true essence of football. To paraphrase the title of your compatriot Diego Maradona's book (I am the people's Diego), do you also feel like such a player?

"(Laughs) How can you not be close to the people who love you for what you love to do? We footballers owe a lot to the fans because they appreciate us for what we are. We wouldn't be anyone without people, and that's why I love being surrounded by supporters. It's a reward we give each other."

It was Maradona, who considered you a "football brute" because of your natural talent, who believed in you as a footballer by calling you up to the national team for the first time, a few days before the 2010 World Cup.

"It was an incredible feeling. I went to South Africa coached by the best player in history and my teammate was Messi, the best player at the time. I was lucky enough to be able to share everything with them, from breakfast to dinner, training sessions and many other moments, and I was only 20 years old..."

Do you remember any special attention from them?

"Diego was very kind to all of us. At 11 o'clock in the evening, he'd come knocking on our room and ask us how we were feeling if the members of our family who'd accompanied us to South Africa were all right. He made himself available to everyone. And the fact that he called me a "football brute" caused quite a stir (laughs)."

You have an Italian background in common with him. In the south of Italy, one of the most South American places outside of South America...

"I arrived in Palermo with a lot of expectations, and I'll never forget the welcome people gave me at the airport. I remember discovering the city and the closeness of the people, with whom I could easily identify as an Argentine.

"Palermo is a magnificent city, and it was there that I met my wife. We've been together for 14 years now and I always say that I have a piece of Palermo in my heart."

Then, in the summer of 2011, your historic transfer to Paris Saint Germain for 42 million...

"At the time, it was a record sum for PSG, where I arrived as the first major acquisition under the Qataris. They believed in me so much and, along with Palermo, that's the team I continue to follow passionately."

Did you feel any pressure because of the huge sum you paid for your contract?

"Absolutely not. In fact, I never felt any pressure on the pitch, I always played as I came, in a natural way. All I thought about was playing, I hardly felt anything around me, even though, looking at the photos, I realise that I've had some great moments from a footballing point of view."

Was that goal against Chelsea in the quarter-final first leg of the 2013/14 Champions League the high point of your career?

"To be honest, I think I've played a number of matches at a high level, but it's obvious that that move, which involved a number of dribbles and ended with a goal against a great team like Chelsea, was an indelible moment, not least because it brought me even closer to the fans.

"When I saw the fans' reactions on the video, with people running their hands through their hair in disbelief at the action, I was surprised too. And that's when I realised that I had done something magnificent."

At Paris, you had so many champions as teammates and a coach like Carlo Ancelotti.

"Carlo is an excellent coach, especially when it comes to management. If Real Madrid are winning today, it's also thanks to the way he leads the team. I'll never forget his humanity and empathy."

Is it true that one night you woke him up so that he could come and celebrate with you?

"(Laughs) That's absolutely true. We were in a restaurant celebrating the new owner's first Ligue 1 title, and at two in the morning, Pocho Lavezzi called him in front of us all. Carlo was asleep, but he answered anyway, thinking it was something serious, and barely twenty minutes later he arrived at the restaurant to celebrate with us.

"It was incredible for a coach who had already won so much. He told us many anecdotes and stories from his past, giving us further proof of his gentleness. Carlo knew how to make his players love him, and with him at PSG we were a real family."

You went back to Italy in 2018, to a Roma team Francesco Totti had left a year before...

"As soon as I heard about the possibility of returning to Italy, I was delighted. Roma are one of the greatest teams in Italy, and there was so much desire to do well."

Perhaps too much? As if expectations were too high?

"Personally, in the first year, I couldn't find the right balance with the coach at the time (Eusebio Di Francesco, editor's note), who made me play more in midfield as an inside player and forced me to defend too much.

"Then Paulo Fonseca arrived and everything changed for the better from a tactical point of view, even if I was stopped by a hip injury that prevented me from playing for a year and a half. All this in a team that had placed so many hopes in me, which is a shame."

However, your first goal against Atalanta remains in the minds of the Giallorossi fans. And not just any goal, but a brilliant backheel...

"It's also one of those gestures that I executed naturally, without effort. It's also one of those things that I saw again on video later, and I realised how delighted the people in the stadium were with what I'd done."

At Roma, you played with Daniele De Rossi, another totem of the capital club. How was that?

"I was sure he would become a coach because he was already on the pitch with me. He's someone who lives for football and wants to know every aspect of it. And I also knew he was going to play in Argentina because of all the questions he asked me about our football, he knew all the teams and all the players in the Argentinian league, it was incredible."

Unfortunately, his adventure as coach of the Giallorossi ended very quickly. 

"I'm sure he'll do very well in the future because he's someone who knows football very well and knows how to combine the ancient and modern concepts of the sport. He's also someone who knows how to manage the group, and everyone has spoken very highly of him."

Who is the strongest person you've ever played with?

"With Zlatan Ibrahimovic, I played with my eyes closed. In general, apart from Messi, who I played with in the national team, I'd say he's the strongest. Then, as a pure centre-forward, Edinson Cavani was unique in my eyes. At Palermo, I developed a great understanding with him, both on and off the pitch, where he used to prepare mate and asado for us young players (laughs). On the pitch, I knew where he was even before I saw him.

"After Messi, I think Neymar was the most brilliant, he saw things that others didn't, he had a unique creativity. And then there's another one..."

And who's that?

"Josip Ilicic. We had a lot of fun together at Palermo."