"Style is more important than titles"

Javier Mascherano has been called many things: The Little Boss, Monster Masch and The Octopus, but he prefers to go by Javier. The Argentina captain started his career as a forward and when he was eight his coach, his father, who played in Argentina's second division, deployed him as a midfielder. From there his feet have taken him from River Plate to Corinthians, a brief spell at West Ham and then nearly four years at Liverpool. Since last August, Mascherano has played in La Liga for Barcelona, playing a vital role in Tuesday's defeat of Arsenal in the Champions League. Barça may yet be joined by Real Madrid in the last eight, but not by Valencia, which lost 3-1 in its second-leg match against Schalke on Wednesday.

"Eleven play, five wait on the bench and six watch from the stands"

Question. What's it like being a midfielder in England?

Answer. It was one of the best things that happened to me in my career. It's pure soccer; there's no cheating, just playing to win. It's the soccer you play when you're a kid. It was a confidence boost for me as I started playing in the street. I have good memories of England. I enjoyed myself a lot.

Q. What did Liverpool give you?

A. With Rafa Benítez I perfected the tactical side. He gave me the chance to prove I could play in England. Tactically, he's very good. He could read the weaknesses of opponents.

Q. He didn't restrict his players excessively?

A. No. He always gave us freedom to play, but in defense we always had to be organized. [...] When I arrived the team had [Momo] Sissoko, [Steven] Gerrard and [Xabi] Alonso and my first thought was that if I hadn't played at West Ham, why would I be able to at Liverpool? But he gave me confidence. Gerrard moved up to play behind [Fernando] Torres and I played alongside Alonso. He was the creator and I provided the balance, I played as a sweeper, covering the spaces. I was reborn at Liverpool, I feel like it is my home although it didn't end well. The club wanted to sell me and I understand that business is part of the sport.

Q. As a child, you watched European soccer. Did you see anything like this Barcelona team?

A. No, I've never seen a team like Barça. I watched Van Gaal's Ajax and other great teams, like Lippi's Juventus, but nothing like this team. There isn't a single way to play the game; they are all valid. My job was to play, to hit the ball upfield, and that's what I did. You play the way you can. Luckily I'm here now and I know there is another way to think, feel and play soccer. I've had the chance to understand it. It would have been easy to stay at Liverpool, my place in the team was secure. But I wanted to play in a team in the hunt for trophies. But beyond what we might win or not, I wanted to find out if I could play in a team like this and be part of a team that will be remembered for its style of play. That's more important than titles. People remember the [Dutch national side of the 1970s] "clockwork orange" and it never won the World Cup.

Q. Looking at your statistics, are you playing as little as it appears?

A. In Argentina they want to give the idea that I'm playing very little, but I'm happy, especially when you bear in mind Barça's midfield. It's the best in history. I have to be respectful and conscious that if I don't play, Busquets or Keita do, and Xavi or Iniesta, the best creators in the world, unique and unrepeatable. To the detriment of the sport, we won't ever see anything like them again. And above all, Busquets is the perfect player for this club. Sergio, who has the talent to play in any team in the world, was born to play for Barça. He has everything a Barça midfielder should have: defensive ability, good technique and perfect tactical order. I watch him and try to learn, to take parts of his game on board. We have different profiles. I've always been involved and you need a group to be champion. Eleven play, five wait on the bench and six watch from the stands. But to make the 11 on the field play well you need healthy competition. And that's why I came here.

Q. Did you write off any money?

A. We'll leave that for another day.