He’s got what it takes to ferry the Kings of Europe
Press Article | 13th June 2011
As a boy Nestor De Barros never dreamed that one day he would get to meet his favourite football team, let alone party with them after winning the Champions League. That dream came true a week ago when Nestor, a driver for The Kings Ferry, spent the week driving Barcelona FC around London for the 2011 Champions League final. His story shows that when you’re working for one of the UK’s leading coach operators and UEFA’s official Champions League transport partner, being in the driver’s seat is the best place to be.
“As soon as I found out that Barcelona FC were in the final of the Champions League I spoke to my line manager asking for the chance to be their driver. I grew up in Venezuela and have been a fan of the Club since I was young, so I wanted to do everything in my power to get this job. I’m not sure if it was my passion, the fact that I speak fluent Spanish or simply good luck but I was thrilled when I was chosen and was determined to do my best,” explains Nestor.
As their dedicated coach driver, Nestor collected the Barcelona FC team and personnel on Tuesday 24th May from Stansted Airport and spent the week ensuring that each day the team got to its destination on time – whether it was the Arsenal training ground for practice or back to their hotel.
“I only really got stressed once, when we were running half an hour late for practice and kept getting stuck in red lights. We had a police escort too which added to the traffic and I wasn’t going to take any risks,” Nestor explained.
Nestor’s highlight was definitely Saturday – the day of the big game against Manchester United at Wembley Stadium. “I collected the team from their hotel at 4.45pm, three hours before kick off. The team were singing and quite loud on the way to Wembley – it was a great atmosphere to be in.”
“Unfortunately I didn’t get to watch the game with all the other fans; instead I joined the other drivers in a special room and we watched the game on a large TV screen. Naturally I was thrilled when Barcelona FC won the title, and was even more delighted when the team’s coach, Pep Guardiola, came up to me after the game and shook my hand and gave me a hug. It was a great moment.”
After the game Nestor drove the team to the Natural History Museum in London where the Club had transformed of the rooms and brought in their own Spanish chef to serve up a celebration dinner party for the team, their families and Club personnel.
“Being so close to the Cup itself was amazing, and I knew I had some precious cargo on board. We arrived at the Museum at 11.30pm where several hundred fans had gathered outside to welcome their heroes. Some of the players climbed through the sun roof and onto the top of the coach with the Cup so the party atmosphere was already in full swing.”
“I parked the coach and didn’t expect to do much when Pep Guardiola came outside to invite me to join them for their celebration dinner inside. It was a total surprise and a fantastic experience, especially sitting next to Xavi and David Villa at dinner. The only thing that was a shame was I had to stick to water and soft drinks as there was no way I would ever drink on duty,” recalls Nestor.
“On Sunday I collected a tired but happy team from their hotel and took them to the airport for their journey home to Spain. When we arrived at the airport David Villa asked me to take a photo of him in the driver’s seat and then gave me his jacket as a farewell thank you gift. He was such a good guy and it was a great way to end what was one of the most memorable weeks of my life.”
“When I began my career as a coach driver and joined The Kings Ferry in 2006, I had no idea that one day I would get to have so much fun at work. Who knows, one day I might even get the chance to do it all again?” hopes Nestor. With The Kings Ferry’s excellent reputation for coach transport and his own winning performance, Nestor might just get that chance after all.