Falcao dreams of European glory

Atletico Madrid striker Radamel Falcao said it is his career goal to win the Champions League and World Cup titles.

The Colombia international has already won plenty of silverware over the years, with Atletico’s Europa League victory over Athletic Bilbao and the European Super Cup win against Chelsea earlier in 2012 among the highlights of his career.

Falcao is not satisfied with what he has achieved so far just yet, and he has set his sights on more trophies at club and international level.

“I would like to be remembered for the titles,” Falcao told Goal.com.

“I would like to collect plenty of trophies. In terms of trophies I covet the Champions League and the World Cup, you never get enough of that.

“There have been some special moments already, important games, finals… so far the European Super Cup against Chelsea and the Europa League final against Athletic Bilbao have given me great memories.”

The 26-year-old seems to perform best when it really matters, with man-of-the-match performances in the 2011 and 2012 Europa League finals, and a hat-trick in this year’s European Super Cup.

And he revealed that he indeed thrives under pressure.

“Perhaps my desire for victory makes me raise my level. I perform better than average at the critical moments. I had the chance to do it in three finals,” he said.

“Have I ever felt that I achieved perfection? Yes. In some games I seem to do everything right and every shot I take ends up being a goal. I can’t define it. You are just gifted and you put in a perfect performance.”

Falcao is one of the undisputed stars of the footballing world right now, but the attacker has stressed that he has had to work hard and make sacrifices to fulfill his dreams.

“Obviously there are some things I cannot get back. I never experienced certain things, but my dream was to play football at a professional level,” he added.

“I knew from the beginning that I was going to miss out on some life experiences in pursuit of my dream.

“Football takes things away from you but gives you many things back in return. I’m happy with the decision I made and I’m enjoying myself.”