Eli Ibarra: ‘100 matches, it’s easy to say, but that’s a lot’

She was born in Azkoitia, but when she was barely three months old her family moved to Elgoibar, where she has been living since.

1-What does having played 100 matches with Athletic Club mean to you?
It’s meant something really important for me. One-hundred matches is easy to say, but that’s a lot of matches. To be able to play that many matches one needs a lot of time and regularity. To have accomplished this wearing the red-white jersey has made it all the more special.

2- Are we before a transitional season for the team?
These last few years we’ve set a very high level and spectators have grown accustomed to this. We should consider, however, that the other teams have improved and that now it is harder to win matches.

3-You have classified for the Copa, has this become your main objective?
Until now we haven’t really done much in this competition, but this year we are going to take it more seriously. Like us, Levante also saw the Superliga title escape, which is why it is going to become our biggest rival.

4-Has the arrival of foreign players to the Superviga been noticed?
Not much has changed. A couple of good players have arrived, but in my opinion we have better players.

5-Is the competitiveness in the Superliga greater this year?
The teams have been reinforced a lot by all the drafts. In previous seasons, Levante was the only team that was up on the tables with us. But this year, Sevilla and Espanyol have joined us. We should also point out that the title has been in the hands of these two teams.

6-Which team has surprised you the most?
Espanyol. They’ve made up a good team and I knew they would do well, but I didn’t expect them to be that high on the table. Sevilla also has a good team, but they haven’t surprised me as much, because last year they also did well.

7-In what you’ve played so far, who do you think is the best player?
Espanyol player, Adriana. I’ve known her for a while and she is good. Physically, she is tall and thin, and technically she is good. She’s a special player.

8-Who would be a world reference in the field right now?
In Germany and Holland they begin playing football at a very early age, unlike here, and that shows. When we travel abroad we notice that there is a great differnece.

9-Do you think a woman can play with men?
We are different by nature and, in my opinion, there is no comparison. Technically speaking, a woman who has the skills and trains hard could very well pair up to a man, but physically, men are much stronger.

10-Do you have any habits on the pitch?
I don’t do anything special, just go out on the pitch as usual.

11-Has there been an increase of rojiblanca fans in Elgoibar since your arrival to Athletic Club?
There are the same number of Athletic as there are Real fans. In my family too, there are two allegiances. On one side are my mother and brother who are Real fans, and on the other my father and I are Athletic fans.