Adriano Basso stood up in a team meeting with Bristol City's psychologist before a season-defining game at home to Rotherham because he felt as though he needed to have his say.
It was May 2007 and the Robins had to beat their League One opponents at Ashton Gate on the final day of the season to secure a return to the Championship for the first time in nine years.
A draw or defeat could have resulted in Blackpool leapfrogging them into second and heading into the fixture on the back of a loss against Millwall, manager Gary Johnson was pulling out all the stops to ensure there would be little chance of blowing a golden opportunity.
Therefore he drafted in a sports psychologist to help his side get over the line but for Basso, who had waited over 30 years for a moment as big as that one, there was absolutely no need for the pep talk - City's fate had already been decided.
"The psychologist came to us on the last game and said 'listen guys, we have two options. I will tell you the options and you chose which one you want'" City's only Brazilian footballer told Bristol Live in an exclusive interview this week.
"He says 'the bad one is we draw the game or lose and the supporters clap their hands and say well done guys, let's go to the play-offs. The other is, we win the game, people come onto the pitch throw you in the air, you get champagne and celebrate - which one do you want?'
"I said 'can I say something? I have not come all the way from the start of the season until now to have an option. Why should I play in my mind that there are two options, a negative and positive? The only choice we have here is to win.
"I said 'I came from Brazil, I didn't come here to waste my time. I came here to achieve things. The opportunity I have now, how can I let it go for 90 minutes? There's no chance. We need to fight alongside each other here and we're going to win and thank God that happened and we got promoted."
It took just seven minutes for David Noble to score his first of two before Alex Russell added the gloss on the 3-1 victory to lift City out of the third tier. That attitude of Basso encapsulates his mentality in a nutshell and without that mindset, City may have never taken the plunge on Woking's reserve goalkeeper at the age of 30.
A stroke of genius or a stroke of luck, call it what you will but not even Johnson would have imagined the coup he pulled off after the season had already got underway in 2005.
Johnson's brother Peter was working for the reserves at Woking when he called up his old man to suggest an unknown Brazilian stopper who was impressing. Initially and understandably wary, Basso was offered a two-month deal at City which would later develop into five memorable years and over 150 games.
Basso, who eventually settled in Long Ashton, said: "When you think about achieving things, you cannot achieve anything without opportunities.
"The first battle is to get the opportunity and when you have that... My aim was to get through the door at Bristol City first and then work hard to get my opportunity to play because without playing you can't show who you are and what you can do.
"I didn't know where Bristol was on the map. I was looking for it, doing an internet search and everything. I saw a nice club, and I was saying to everyone that I think I have chosen the best club. I was blessed to have that opportunity.
"I never went out with the lads because that was my way of living. I have 10 months a year to achieve something and in 10 months I never went out, to clubs or anything because I had no business being in this country. At that point, I didn't know I would stay here or have a life here and I thought I wanted to go back to Brazil as a winner and I needed to have that opportunity."
After spells in Brazil with Ponte Preta and Atletico Paranaense, an unsuccessful three-month trial with Arsenal before ending up at St Albans City and Woking, Basso knew that his one and only chance had finally arrived.
Following his debut against Swindon, he grabbed his opportunity with both hands quickly cementing his spot in Johnson's side helping form a formidable defence that club legend Louis Carey and Jamie McCombe - even if the language barrier caused some moments of confusion.
Basso laughs when he says: "There was a great communication between us but basically I didn't speak much English and it was difficult to understand each other. Sometimes I shout 'keeper' and we came for the same ball and bang.
"It was a great experience because I knew when they weren't there I was there and when I wasn't there they were there for me."
With the likes of Marvin Elliot, Bradley Orr and Lee Trundle firing on all cylinders, City continued their momentum from their promotion season into the Championship, going undefeated in their first eight matches.
Johnson had helped instil a winning mentality built from a solid defence that kept 15 clean sheets as his side exceeded all expectations by ending the campaign in fourth with a semi-final play-off with Crystal Palace to come.
Asked about the secrets to City's success, Basso said: "We went to the following season with the belief and momentum created. We started to win games, and it was the first season in Championship for a while.
"It was a mix of quality and hard work, some players were limited but they worked hard. Also, I think in terms of Gary Johnson and the way he conducted things. He could take words out of a stone because he really pushed us to the extreme and he worked so hard every day so that was one of the secrets.
"I always talk about believing but people sometimes believe when they start to see things moving forward. I remember one of the conversations the chairman came to me and said Adriano 'listen, we make sure we'll stay in the league two or three years and then we'll make a structure to move higher.'
"I said 'I'm sorry I'm already 32 or 33 years old I can't wait for that, I can't wait that long. This year is the year for us again because I don't have time.' We're here now so we're already established. I was always trying to push the lads to think that way because as a team you have to bear in mind that the only way to achieve something is when everyone else thinks the same.
"If I think big and you think small, how are we going to achieve something? When I hear too much negativity, I step in and say I disagree and we started to believe and get results and we started to see the teams that we were beating and started thinking it's possible.
"We had the power of unity. Even with a limited, in terms of comparing against other squads but we had that unity."
It was a moment before the play-off semi-final with Palace that became so synonymous with Basso's time in BS3 and how he endeared himself to the supporters. During a Q&A before the fixture, the interviewer asked to describe himself in two words to which Basso responded "always believe."
"It was unbelievable," he added. "There were more than 25,000 supporters with those big hands writing 'Always Believe' on them - since that, they have a song that they created and I'm so happy and grateful for Bristol City."
Even a return from the sports psychologist couldn't prevent a Dean Windass wondergoal being the difference in the final against Hull to prevent City from reaching the promised land.
"That was for me a remarkable experience and one that I will never, ever forget. Imagine being born in Brazil and many years later you find yourself at Wembley in a stadium that is the most famous in the world.
"Not many players from Brazil, maybe those in the national team, will never get the opportunity to play there. It was disappointing that day but at the same time I was very proud, I didn't put my head down, I didn't cry I just said we went further than what we thought was possible in terms of a team.
"I think that season the most frustrating thing for me was that we didn't finish in the top two. With five games to go, we were top of the table. We had the last five games and we needed to win three to get promoted. We lost three, drew one and won one."
Basso's time at City would eventually come to an end in 2010 which we were unable to get into for confidentiality reasons, but whatever happened behind the scenes it certainly didn't tarnish his view of the club.
He added: "I always follow Bristol City because first of all, I love it. It's in my heart, It's the club that gave me the opportunity that I never going to forget it, never ever. It's in my heart and I've wished them all the best since I left."
A short spell at Wolves would follow before teaming up with Nigel Pearson at Hull where Basso would make an emotional return to Ashton Gate greeted by a hero's welcome from supporters. Following stints in the non-league including at Truro City, FC United and Nuneaton, Basso would eventually hang up his gloves before taking a goalkeeper coaching role at Hartlepool.
Now with League One side Sheffield Wednesday, Basso feels he still has unfinished business in football: "One thing I have in my mind is to help others achieve what I didn't. That's why I feel like I still need to be in the game because there is a lot I can teach and there's still a lot I can learn."
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