When will pre-season begin at Newcastle?

We get cracking on Thursday. I’m in Montpellier at the moment and tomorrow, we’re catching the plane back to Newcastle. I don’t mind admitting that it’s a bit annoying to have to leave the sun…what a chore! Apart from that, though, I’m pleased to begin training again. We’ve made the most of a long holiday and, from Thursday, it’s back to work.

Have you kept yourself fit during the close season?

I’ve got a gym at home so I’ve made the most of that to train, do stretching and go on the exercise bike. Nothing too taxing. I’m not too worried about pre-season as it always begins at a gentle pace.

What news have you heard from Newcastle?

All I know is that they signed a 20-year-old Portuguese player, Hugo Viana, for over 80 million francs (about £8 million). And the second player to sign for us is Ipswich defender Titus Bramble. So far there haven’t been any other signings.

As for you, are you happy to spend a second year at Newcastle?

Completely. We’ve got the preliminary round of the Champions League to get through and just thinking that we can qualify and meet the biggest teams in Europe motivates me. It’s funny, when I was in Monaco, everyone thought that I was there to sign for them. The same thing happened in Marseille. Everyone was saying, ‘Oh, terrific Laurent, you’re going to sign for OM (Olympic Marseille)’. But no, sorry, I’m spending next season at Newcastle. (laughs).

Finally, how was your stay in Portugal?

I didn’t go there in the end. All the hotels were full, which forced us to change our plans. Instead we went to Monaco. Besides that, I had the honour of meeting Michael Johnson. He was staying in the same hotel as us and so I made sure I said hello. I told him I admired him greatly for everything he had achieved during his career. It was tremendous.

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