Defender discusses re-signing for the Grecians
Exeter City defender Christian Ribeiro admitted that having such a positive experience in his first season at St James Park played its part in his decision to stay on for a second term.The Welshman was named as the club’s Player of the Year at the end of the season, and made 39 appearances in Exeter colours as the side finished 10th in Sky Bet League 2.
An eye-catching campaign meant that Christian had other suitors when his Grecians contract expired in the summer, but he has now committed to being part of City’s campaign in 2015/16.
And he feels that the club can set their sights high for the forthcoming campaign, and is hopeful of having a memorable season.
“Tis and I spoke honestly at the end of the season about what we wanted to achieve, and we said that we would keep in contact over the summer,” said Christian. “I met Tis again a fortnight or so ago and we talked through things again.
“I did speak to other teams in different leagues, but I enjoyed my time at Exeter so much last year and really made me feel welcome here, and that never really left my mind.
“It feels like I’ve got unfinished business here – this year we’re all looking upwards rather than down. Hopefully it’ll be an exciting year for us all.
“I’m an ambitious person, and I wanted to make sure that Exeter’s ambitions were in line with mine – and they certainly are. I really enjoyed working with Tis last year, and the players and supporters meant that it was such a positive experience for me.
“I had opportunities elsewhere, and I am really grateful for those opportunities. But I decided that Exeter is the right place for me to continue my career and I believe we can continue to work our way up and have a really successful season together.
“Everyone at the club is upping their game and looking upwards, and that’s a great place to start from. There will be ups and downs and the other teams will try to make it a difficult season for us, but all we can focus on is being the best we can be. There’s no doubt that we can be right up there and challenging for promotion.”
The players have now been on their summer break for six weeks – and already anticipation is building for the new campaign.
The Sky Bet League 2 fixtures will be released at 9am on Wednesday 17th June, meaning that City supporters will be able to mark all of the long journeys, derbies and decisive matches onto the calendar.
Ribeiro feels that the City squad will be keen to get back to the Cat & Fiddle for the start of pre-season, as they aim to get out of the blocks quickly in the new season.
“Everyone enjoys having a break – but after a little while you start to think, ‘I do miss the football on a Saturday’ – that’s engrained in everyone,” continued Ribeiro. “We’ll all be itching to get back and I think everyone at Exeter knows that there is a positive atmosphere and so we’re looking forward to getting back.
“It will be a really hungry place to play next year. The hard work starts in a couple of weeks and we’ll build ourselves up to have a really good start to the season.
“It’s always exciting when the fixture list is just about to come out, so we’ll look forward to who we face first.”
Christian Ribeiro is on board for 2015/16 – are you? Season Tickets are on sale now – Adults can see all 23 League 2 fixtures for just £312.80, Seniors from just £254.15 and Under-18s and Students from £97.75. Click here for more information including how to buy.