Magic 7 (Part Two)

"In Portugal, the football is more technical. Here it's more physical, more confrontational. People just tackle you hard if you try to play football. I remember in the first year, I was criticised for going to the floor too easily. That was an area of my game I had to change quite fast. It was, perhaps, the biggest lesson I've learned in England. It's a different type of game in Portugal. But the rules should be the same. If it's a free-kick the referee should give a free-kick. But here, referees choose to ignore fouls a lot of the time. The referees here tend to favour defenders, because they get to tackle a lot without getting a yellow card. It's very difficult for a defender in England to get sent off by collecting two yellow cards. I think the referees should protect the attackers more, not only me, not only wingers, but strikers as well. If it's a dirty tackle or a harsh tackle, the ref should give a yellow card right away. But the players are often told, 'Next time it' s a booking'."