LFP.es visits Alcorcón before the derby with Leganés (I)

Pacey, skilful and with a keen eye for goal. David Rodríguez (Talavera de la Reina, Toledo, 1986) is our first interviewee. After a brief spell in English football, the striker from Toledo has returned to the Spanish game to light up the attack at AD Alcorcón, a club that, in his own words, gives him “peace of mind, enthusiasm and confidence”. The forward spoke to LFP.es in Santo Domingo before the derby against CD Leganés.

LFP.es: In your first match you scored a brace that helped deliver victory against Albacete (2-3) Had you even dreamed of such a great start?
D. Rodríguez: The first match lived up to expectations in a ground that is going to be very difficult as the matches pass by. We got the three points and we’re proving to be quite reliable and competitive on the road. We have a problem at home, but we’ll get over it as soon as possible because we’re focused on that.

LFP.es: What was it about Alcorcón that attracted you?
D. Rodríguez: Above all, the conversation with the boss. I spoke to him and he made me see that I was going to be an important player. The fact that it is a small club, but one that has dreams and enthusiasm, works hard and is a family also seduced me. Also, they made a lot of effort to bring me here and that means a lot to a player.

"The manager asks that I be myself, try to have that instinct in the box and work for the team" 

LFP.es: You’ve just arrived at the club and you’re already in the first eleven, winning the confidence of José Bordalás What’s it like to work for him?
D. Rodríguez: There are two parts to every day. One part is the work, where he is very demanding; you cannot relax even one second and he wants every player to win his place in training. Then there is the other part in the dressing room, where it is a family and he is partly responsible for that.

LFP.es: What does the boss ask of you?
D. Rodríguez: Above all to be myself, that I try to have that instinct in the box, but also to work for the team, and to try and give solutions to people with the ball and that when we don’t have it, to be the first to apply pressure.

LFP.es: What can David Rodríguez give to Alcorcón, and vice versa?
D. Rodríguez: I have no doubt: peace of mind, enthusiasm and trust in myself. I know that will always be there and now I hope to deliver my part of the deal, which is goals. Also, hard work and union.

LFP.es: Last year you played half a season at Brighton & Hove Albion in England. How would you rate the experience?
D. Rodríguez: There is something that really grabbed my attention. If you’re from Alcorcón, your team has to be Alcorcón. The change I went through in England, motivates players more. Knowing that you have a city behind you. Now I’m at Alcorcón I would like the team to be able to give the people who don’t come to the matches something to get excited about and help them participate a little in their city’s team.

"The dressing room is a family and Bordalás is partly responsible"

LFP.es: You already know what it is to win promotion to the Liga BBVA with Celta de Vigo, where you were also a key player. Do you think Alcorcón are capable of doing something like that? 
D. Rodríguez: We can’t let that distract us. We’re a small, hard-working team, a team that has to take it match by match and keep our foot on the pedal. We have to think day by day and work hard, because in the end that is what will take you to one position or another. 

LFP.es: You scored 17 goals in the 2010/11 Liga Adelante, your personal best. Have you set yourself a target this season?
D. Rodríguez: I demand a lot from myself and I want to beat that number. It is true that goals build your confidence, but in the end it is a team. I’m not going to get obsessed with it or anything like that. That could end up making me nervous at times. I want to work, work, work and for the team to be high up.