Joaquín Sánchez has been presented in the press room at Benito Villamarín Stadium as new Real Betis Balompié player. The winger starts in this way his second spell in the Green-and-White institution, making true his dream of coming back home. Before saluting the more of 20,000 gathered in the Stadium, Joaquín spoke before the media.

Difficult negotiation for his return: “I’m aware of the Club’s huge effort for bringing me here. My wish was to come back home. And I said it so. There have been hard and difficult weeks. But I am where I wanted to be, where I’m going to be happy. Let’s hope this is the first of many happy days.”

A dream come true: “It’s like I never left because my feelings and heart have always been with Betis. I’ve been in clubs like Valencia CF, and I care and respect a lot their fans. Also in Malaga, where I felt like at home. I went through happy moments there, but now I’m living in a dream, I’m happy as a little child. Luckily it came out all right in the end and I’m going to enjoy every minute. I hope I can return all the love and the respect that the fans have always given me, even when I wasn’t playing here.”

First spell in Real Betis: “I went through very happy moments during my first spell here, but now it’s different. It’s like living in a dream and seeing it come true. I can’t put into words the feeling of wearing this shirt again and playing in this stadium. That’s why I want to enjoy every moment.”

Is this the happiest momento of your career?: “It might be because is making true I dream I have since many years ago, when I left this place when I was 25. I had to come back, my heart was telling me so. I can’t compare it to my first spell here because coming back to where I achieved everything and where I feel so loved is a dream.”

Responsibility to compete in First Division: “I feel all the responsibility in the world but I’m not scared. I’m coming to fight and to enjoy, to help as much as I can. I want to play my part, sharing my experience. Of course we are a team that must work hard and fight till the end. But that’s always been part of Betis, a team that faces adversity. Our fans are going to feel proud of the team that Real Betis Balompié has.”

Was this your last chance to come back home?: “I can say that this was the time and what I wanted the most. People have loved and respected me in Florence. I know I’ve been important there and it’s something I take with me.But you can go against your feelings and heart. But at this point, my only idea was to come back and meet the fans again. That goes beyond everything else.”

Contacts with Pepe Mel: “I haven’t had much time to speak to him. He congratulated me and we said that it’s finally over, and that they are happy that I came. They are going to try to make me feel happy: We didn’t speak much, he had a training session and I had things to do too.”

You’ll be playing along Rubén Castro: “He is a Betis legend. It’s a huge pride to play with him and share moments with the team, not only Rubén, but also the rest of players. The main thing is to be like a family. In the end, apart from the everyday work, what makes the results positive is to be a united group that feels like a family.”

Shareholders meeting on the 23^rd of September: “Real Betis is above everything else. Everyone surrounding Betis, the institution, the fans, everyone has told me that they wanted me back. That’s what matters to me. Personally, the only thing I wanted is to be sitting here today and be a Betis player again. Independently of what is going to happen, I wanted to enjoy at home.”

What happened to your hand?: “In the final moments the tension was huge and Eduardo Macià had is phone off all the time –laughter-. I was really nervous so I hit the first thing I saw. I don’t remember if it was a table or a chair, but I hit it wrongly and I have two small fractures. I’ve never thrown a punch in my life, so I hurt myself –laughter-. Next week I’ll have the cast replaced for a smaller one and I will be able to train with my teammates. We still have two weeks before the next match and they are very important because I haven’t trained in days because of the situation.”

Tears at his arrival: “That’s something I’ll take with me. It’s impossible to please everyone, some people may not like me. But I’ll have the satisfaction that the people remember me and enjoyed with me. I hope I can all those people happy doing what I like: playing football. There’s nothing more beautiful than that: make people enjoy. It’s the biggest satisfaction, to be able to tell my daughters who their father was.”

Motivation and fitness level: “I’m coming with full motivation. No doubt about it. Of course I’m not a 20-year old guy. I’m not going to say that I’m a better player because of my experience, but I have improved certain things that I didn’t have before. I feel very well at a physical level. I have no doubt in that sense and I’m not scared.”