You played in 26 Clasicos. What are your best memories?
"My best memories are when I won, whether it was with Barca or with Real Madrid (laughs). The rest doesn’t matter!"
Many Barca fans say you reached your peak at Barca. Is that true?
"Everyone is entitled to their opinion (smiles). What matters most is how you play, and that your team is the one that wins in the end."
What do you think of Kylian Mbappe’s season? He’s been getting a lot of criticism lately.
"He’s still one of the best players in the world. His goal tally this season is just incredible. On the other hand, there’s also the team’s performance to consider. If he scores that many goals and his team wins trophies, the analysis is completely different.
"In his first season, he started a bit inconsistently because he had to adapt to a new environment and a new league. But after that, he reached the level everyone expected from him."
His idol is Cristiano Ronaldo. Do you think he can achieve as much as him at Real Madrid?
"I don’t know, I don’t have a crystal ball (smiles). In any case, with all the qualities he has... But we’re talking about the same club in different eras and with different players. It’s always hard to compare players from different generations. But to reach that level, he’ll have to win titles."
Jude Bellingham had a fantastic start at Real Madrid, scoring crucial goals, especially his double in the Clasico at Montjuic. Since then, he’s slowed down. How do you see that?
"This season has been tough for him, mainly because he’s had several injuries. That interrupted his progress. When you come back after a long absence, it’s like starting from scratch. That’s really been his main issue."
Has he been affected by tactical changes, with many players drifting to the left side?
"It’s not always easy, you also have to know how to find your position on the pitch to get the best out of yourself. He’s still an amazing player, but when you play for such a club and go two seasons without winning, the atmosphere gets more tense. The whole team feels it."
You often played on the wing at Barca, so you know the position well. What do you think of Marcus Rashford’s impact?
"He had the chance to come to Barcelona and he did pretty well. He showed the full range of his abilities. We’ll see soon if he stays and gets more playing time, even though not everything is up to him."
If you were Deco, would you keep him?
(Laughs) "Deco is much more qualified than I am!"
The rumour about Jose Mourinho returning to Real Madrid is gaining traction. What do you think?
"I think you’d have to ask the president of Real Madrid (smiles). He’s a very good friend, I’ve known him in many roles (translator and assistant at Barca, for example). I’m always happy to see him among the top coaches."
The pace of matches has changed a lot, even compared to your era, which isn’t that long ago. The percentage of goals scored in the final minutes is rising. What’s changed?
"I don’t know the exact data, but maybe it’s because with fatigue, you make more mistakes, even though players are extremely well prepared these days. And let’s not forget that matches are now longer, with much more added time than before.
"Plus, there are five substitutions allowed, and of course, match circumstances can always lead to more goals."
The World Cup is just weeks away. The 2006 edition was your last international tournament, and Portugal went out in the semi-finals.
"Yes, that’s a painful memory. It was very intense, we played a lot of high-intensity matches. We also picked up a lot of cards (23 throughout the tournament), which didn’t help us."
There was that quarter-final win on penalties against England.
"A real battle (laughs). There were several bookings (two for each side) and a sending off (Wayne Rooney in the 62nd minute). It wasn’t the best advertisement for football."
You came very close to the final.
"We put together some great performances but... we ran into France again. That’s a bad memory for our generation because every time we faced France, we lost. But that’s football, that’s how it goes."
This upcoming World Cup will be very open. Who do you see winning it?
"Yes, there will be a lot of favourites, as we’ve seen in recent tournaments. You need great players but also some luck, especially depending on who you face.
"At the top, I’d put the teams with experience of reaching the final stages, like Brazil, Argentina, Spain, Portugal, and France, who actually have enough players for two teams - that’s incredible."