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| Thursday, 05 February 2009 08:06 |
In-demand Eliseu happy with decision to stay at MalagaAzorean urges focus from team-mates during run-in Portuguese forward Eliseu says he always intended to stay with Malaga during the transfer window, despite growing interest from English Premiership clubs.The 25-year-old former Belenenses man has been one of the revelations of the La Liga season so far, helping newly-promoted Malaga to an impressive 8th place in the Spanish top flight and catching the eye with his blistering pace and eye for goal. Eliseu’s form saw him linked with a move away from La Rosaleda, where he has played since the summer of 2007, but the Azorean insists it was never his intention to leave. “My first choice was always to stay. The people love me, I have many friends here and my family is comfortable. I have no reason to leave Malaga. The fans have spoken to me a lot and asked me to stay, which was touching and is another reason I’m continuing here.” Transfer speculation surrounding the Portuguese was particularly intense due to the fact that Eliseu is yet to sign a new five-year deal on offer from Malaga, meaning his release clause currently stands at a mere 600,000 Euros. Several Premiership clubs were thought to be willing to active the clause, but Eliseu appears averse to taking advantage of the opportunity. “If the day comes that I have to leave Malaga, I want to leave properly, not through the back door. I am very happy here. For any player, it is a source of pride and further motivation that other clubs notice your work. But I only think about Malaga and the team achieving its objective as soon as possible.” Survival targetOn the field, Eliseu is keen for his team-mates to remain grounded, and refutes any idea of the team turning their attention to European qualification. “We take it match by match. We do not look in the long-term. We must achieve 42-43 points as soon as possible. We must maintain our humility, because we must not forget that Malaga has achieved nothing yet and football has many twists and turns.“First we must secure our status, and then we will think about continuing to win and Europe. Can we maintain our form until the end of the season? It is possible, but very difficult. We are mentally prepared to finish the season at the same level. It will be tough, but if we work we can do it!” By Sean Gillen
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