QUESTION: Approaching the final sprint, Betis are four points from the top 4 and a qualifying place for the C1.

How would you like to hear the music of the Champions League again, for the first time since leaving Lyon in 2019?

ANSWER: "It would be great. Really. It's a prestigious competition, everyone wants to taste it, to play it (...). The people at the club had clearly told me that it was the one of their goals. When I get to a place, it's to play as high as possible. We have a very good team, which is slowly getting closer to the best."

Q: However, Betis was eliminated in the round of 16 of the Europa League by Eintracht Frankfurt... How did you experience this elimination?

A: "I'm not going to lie to you, it was complicated. We were all aware of not having had a good game at home (1-2). We had offered them the goals. We were all very disappointed. And in the second leg, it was hard to go out like that, at the last minute of extra time, after all the efforts we made. We dreamed of passing, and we saw ourselves going further. But it will make us grow , I'm sure."

Q: The club chained contract extensions this winter, with Sergio Canales, Manuel Pellegrini, Borja Iglesias, yourself...

A: "It's an ambitious project. They try to keep the best players. It shows the ambition of the club. And I hope there will be other quality players who will come".

Q: You are having your best season at Sevilla, the fans love you, you have just passed the 100-game mark at the club...

A: "Adapting here was not complicated. Me, on the pitch, I will give everything, I am like that. I am someone who does not pretend. And here, that's what they ask. I'm playing, I'm having fun, we're lucky to have good results. It's my best season here. Everything is fine. Everyone gives me confidence. And I'm not going to tell you. hiding helps a lot."

Q: Have you regained your level of 2017-2018, the year of your coronation at the 2018 World Cup with the Blues?

A: "I'm not far from that level. But I'm still missing goals. I know I can still improve statistically. When you've got a taste for goal, it's hard to pass."

Q: You are one of the most fouled players in the big five leagues.

Did you expect this kind of treatment in Spain?

A: "I expected it, yes. I'm a player who likes contact, duels. It's something I need when I'm on the pitch. To feel the opponent. So inevitably, when you want to be close to the opponent, you expose yourself to faults and friction. And there is no problem. We adapt. It's my game. It's football."

Nabil Fekir during his interview with AFP on April 1, 2022 in Seville CRISTINA QUICLER AFP

Q: You haven't played for the France team since September 2020... Have you followed Les Bleus' last two matches against Côte d'Ivoire and South Africa?

A: "Yes, I followed from afar."

Q: Is it a regret not to be summoned anymore?

A: "Normal. Like all players who are not called up. But I sleep well at night. There is a coach, he makes choices, you have to respect them."

Q: Going to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar is still a goal for you?

A: "Normal. Every player wants to play in the best competitions, and the World Cup is one of the best competitions."

Interview by Patxi VRIGNON-ETXEZAHARRETA.

© 2022 AFP