How far is it from Atalanta to Madrid right now?
“We are going to play in two games, the ideal would be to win today, but we have to be careful. The casualties will make the whites be even more attentive, we never play against this team and only on the pitch will we understand what to do. Madrid is one of the the best clubs in the world and when we play this type of game we always grew as a group. “
Is it the most important game of your career?
“Madrid is the team with the most history, but we also played against City, Liverpool, who in the last two years did better than the whites. Sometimes it was difficult for us to get into the rhythm in these appointments, there were difficult moments, but we always grew. What is certain, I repeat, is that we will come out of these games with more knowledge. “
Has the way of dealing with these types of matches changed with experience?
“We are not going to change our nature, which led us to be so high. It is clear that, faced with this type of rival, attention and concentration must be raised.”
What can your Atalanta have more than Madrid at this time?
“We are free, calm. We are not favorites and we have no obligation to win, we will try to measure ourselves against this team also to better understand our level. We are excited, but we know that we will have to give it our all.”
Do you feel the illusion of having arrived at these confrontations with much more force than before?
“Having ambition does not mean being presumptuous, and at one time we were in this course. Having too much pressure on us has already taken its toll, we are going to have to play being aware that we are not a team at the level of the European top as someone says.”
Do you think Madrid is a vulnerable team?
“I never thought that. Madrid is transformed in the Champions League. The match they played in Milan with Inter was of enormous quality. I don't believe much in the discourse of the casualties, the team I saw in the last league days was more humble “But that's a virtue. He won difficult games and came back in the standings despite the difficulties. Tomorrow, for those reasons, it will be a difficult game. We will play it with confidence and never being conceited.”
Did Zidane make more history as a player or as a coach?
“If Zidane played tomorrow, I would be very worried. What I have seen him do on the pitch I saw very few times. When I played for Juventus, I coached the Primavera team of the Bianconeri and often went to see their extraordinary training sessions. to find players similar to him. As a coach he immediately continued to win important competitions. He carries the DNA of football and has confirmed himself as a great player in this sport. “
Is there a casualty for tomorrow?
“They are all available except Hateboer, although it will have to be confirmed with today's training.”