An interview with Tiago Tomas, who describes his native Lisbon as “the best city in all of Europe”.
Tiago Tomas has been in superb form this season, registering five goals and an assist in 13 Bundesliga starts for VfL Wolfsburg. Before returning to action this weekend after the winter break, the Wolves are getting up to speed in the striker’s home country – Portugal. We sat down with the 22-year-old, who told us about his favourite dishes, what he likes about Germany and why Lisbon is Europe’s “best city”.
Welcome home, Tiago! Apart from seeing your family and friends, what do you always look forward to most when you return to Portugal?
Tiago Tomas: “Mainly two things – the food and the weather. I’m maybe a little biased, being from Portugal, but I think both are better in my home country than in Germany. In general, it’s just nice to speak in my native tongue again, as I spend most of the year speaking English or trying my hand at German.”
What dish are you thinking of in particular?
Tiago: “There are so many, but my absolute favourite is my mum’s bacalhau a bras. There isn’t that much traditional Portuguese food at the team hotel. At the buffet there are sometimes pasteis de nata for dessert.
They’re known all over the world and they’re my favourite dessert, particularly with a coffee. I prefer not to eat them here, because once I start I can’t stop.”
Where in Portugal are you from?
Tiago: “I was born in Lisbon and spent my entire life there before being loaned to Stuttgart in 2022. Or, to be specific, in Carcavelos e Parede, which is between Lisbon and Cascais. For me, Lisbon is the best city in all of Europe.”
In your opinion, what makes Lisbon and the surrounding area so special?
Tiago: “There’s obviously breath-taking architecture, there are outstanding restaurants, wonderful beaches, kind people – I could go on and on. The only downside is that there are lots of steep sets of stairs in the centre. You need to be fit to explore the city – or it makes you fit (laughs).”
You’ve been living in Germany for nearly three years now. What do you like about your new home?
Tiago: “I really like how reliable and organised people are. When you arrange to meet at a certain time, everyone’s there. That’s a rarity in Portugal (laughs). Besides that, I’m really enjoying my time in Germany.”
You often refer to your father as your idol. Why is that?
Tiago: “It’s his outlook on life that inspires me so much. He always has a smile on his face and tries to see the positives in every situation. The core message is that life is beautiful and we should enjoy every moment, because we’re never guaranteed to see tomorrow.”
I’m always working to improve my strengths and weaknesses and hope to become a top player one day.
Tiago TomasWith five so far, you’ve scored more goals this season than in any other campaign as a professional footballer. Would you say this is the best season of your career to date?
Tiago: “I’ve certainly never been this consistent. When you’re scoring goals, it’s always easier to say things are going well. I’ve shown my qualities in previous years too, but not over the course of the whole campaign. I’m always working to improve my strengths and weaknesses and hope to become a top player one day.”
What are your goals for the first game of the new year?
Tiago: “Apart from the last two games, we were on a really good run towards the end of last year. We proved we can be a top side and we have to show that on Saturday too. We want to start 2025 with a win and stay within touching distance of the European places.”
