Seven years after having left Heliopolis to continue his development as a footballer in all the categories of Spanish football, Álvaro Cejudo is happy to be back home in Seville. His home that he left with bitterness back in 2007 without having had his debut with the Real Betis Balompié first team. Now, content now that he is at the club he always dreamt of being at, the winger from Cordoba wants to one of the players to see the team back in the First Division. Cejudo spoke with the Club's official media about his return to the green-and.-white club, his enthusiasm and other issues relating to the team.

There is a great difference between being interviewed after having won a match and doing the same having lost.
In the end football is all about results. But you see it all from a different perspective when you win. It's a good week for us to be going to Zaragoza, to earn out three points and take a step forward in the standings.

Julio Velázquez has been saying for a number of weeks now that we have to adjust to the reality of the situation and to be aware that just because the team is called Betis will not make it easier to win.
We had a setback in Pamplona, in a match we were in control of. Except in that match, the team has been performing well despite the results. Of course it is the results that matter, but I think the team is responding and is taking more initiative in recent matches.

Football history is full of moments like this, and not just for Betis. Is it harder to get back on form than it is to maintain an optimum level once you have made it?
Football is very different. For a team that has come from the First Division, we see it every season, it is hard for them to be at the top of the league right from the start. We have never been far away from the top section of the league, we have always been in the fight.

After 12 matches there are only five points that separate Betis from the leaders and there are still 90 points left to play for, and as the matches go by the team is clearly improving. Do you think assessment of Velázquez's work has been unjust?
It all started with reasonable demands in terms of what we have to do on the field of play and what is expected of us. We have lost a couple of matches that we shouldn't have, but that is something that can happen in a season. But you have to be ready to pick yourselves up, which is what we are doing.

What can you tell us about the team? I think we have recovered our confidence and, most importantly, our morale is very much improved.
It is true that in the beginning this weighed us down, maybe because of what had happened last season. But as time goes by we are turning the situation around. Of course this will lead to something positive in the end.

What was the influence, in positive terms, did the defeat in Pamplona have?
We realised that we had the match in the palm of our hands, that we could have finished the first half 0-4, but in this category anyone can bring you down. In the end we came home empty handed when it had been under control.

However, the boss thinks the team still has more advances to make. To what extent can Betis improve and in what?
There are many things that need improving. Given the team we have we should be giving it our all for the whole 90 minutes. We have the players to do that. Little by little we are showing that we can, that we are taking on board the four main things the coach wants us to and which have not sunk in totally yet.

Who would have thought a few years ago that we would see a Second Division Zaragoza - Betis tie. Two teams that, given their history, are fighting to get back into the First Division.
It will be a good match. They are doing well and are on form, despite a couple of recent setbacks. We are going there with the idea of getting the three points and establishing ourselves at the top end of the standings.

Despite this impressive improvement, you are not getting the away victories. The time has come to back up the good results at the Benito Villamarín with away wins.
At the beginning of the league we got a few points from away matches, but we are not managing to establish ourselves at the top of the league. To be at the top we have to keep getting the points, we cannot afford the irregularity of winning home matches and losing away. We have to have runs of positive results, maintain the same style of play both at home and away. We should have no doubts about going to Zaragoza for the three points.

You have faced up to CA Osasuna in a number of seasons in a fight to avoid relegation. We could say that it has been good preparation for what is ahead of you this season.
I know that I have come at a time in which the damands placed on the club are at their greatest, we have to change a lot of things. The idea is for us to work in it together.

You got off to a good start int he team but your participation has dwindled in recent weeks. Have we yet to see the best of Álvaro Cejudo?
I hope so. Everyone wants to play and I work hard throughout the week for that to be possible, but the decision is not mine if I play more or less.

Now that you are 30 and having shone in all divisions of football, do you feel you have matured as a player?
I liked the idea of coming back at this stage in my career because I think I can really bring something to the team. I know I have to do a lot for the team and I hope to be able to do just that.

You have years of experience in the top tier of Spanish football. What have you had to change about your football now you are in the Second Division compared to how you played in the First?
There is a lot less space. In the First Division there is more space to play in. For players like me that is an advantage. You have to change what has been drilled into you quickly, both as a team and individually and we are getting there.

Against FC Barcelona B you played in the left wing-back position. Is that a new position for you?
I have played both left and right wing-back on a number of occasions. It is not up to me if I play or not. That was where I was placed the other day and did what had to be done, as I would in any situation.

Throughout your career you have done well on the scoring front. Have you been obsessed about scoring in the last few matches?
Of course, those of us who play up front like to get in a position to score, and even more so in a team in which we have to maintain a scoring tally and we are required to be at the top of the standings.

Let's talk about the fans, demanding and critical but who lifted the team last Saturday in a match that could have turned sour.
Little by little that 'buzz' is reducing as the matches go by. Every time a mistake was made the fans, who were discontent about last season, reacted badly. Both the fans and the team have to realise that this is not the same season, that we must be united in the objective we have set for this season. If we are not united it is going to be more difficult.

There is a lot of talk about pressure, Betis's obligation to get back into the First Division. All this, instead of belittling a player, gives him that extra motivation.
It isn't negative. We all know where we are. Anyone who comes here know what is expected of them and those that go to a different type of team know what there objective is. At the end of the day there are a lot of possible scenarios, but we know we have joined Betis.

And finally, after years of waiting, I have returned home. What did you do with the shirt you wore on your debut with the Real Betis first team?
I have put it in a safe place at home, it is a very special souvenir for me. My family has always been here and this is where we feel at home. We were really looking forward to coming back.

If there is a victory at Zaragoza, it will be dedicated to Álex Martínez.
The first few days this week there were a few people who were a bit down in the team. We like him a lot, we all hope he gets better soon, but the main thing is that things are done right.

Finally, the inevitable question. When will Rubén Castro the greatest scored in the history of Real Betis Balompié?
Hopefully it will be this weekend, and that it does the team good.