The Atalanta coach gave his impressions after the match played in Bergamo against Real Madrid which ended with a 2-3 defeat for his team.
That cheering!
I must apologize. When I was on the pitch, Ancelotti and I were walking a bit and I didn't see him at first. When I saw it, I thought it was a magnificent tifo. My level of belonging here is total. I'm going to take a good look at it now in photos and videos.
What is the secret of Atalanta? Do you set a limit for yourself?
The truth is that I never thought about it and I never think about it. I still have a long way to go. Maybe later I will. Every year I am very busy trying to achieve something new. I set new goals for myself and try to achieve them. I am very happy here. We are like architects with the owners' money. Here we are trying to build a building because of the possibilities offered. When we finished the match we thought we had done well, but we are disappointed. We were close to equalizing, but we are still missing something. This is what motivates us.
These matches reconcile everyone with football.
The result matters, but I'm 99.99% satisfied. I'm happy for my guys. It was a great match. I get kudos, but it's for the players. They played an excellent match. We were very close to Madrid. Especially in the first half. And we recovered from that second goal. Our ambition is to try to obtain results.
Is the team now closer to Madrid?
We were very close. We had chances. It's hard to match them, because if you make a mistake, they punish you. We need to take a step closer to them. But I am very happy. One step after another, each in their own way.
What did you like best and what did you like least? How is Djimsiti?
He's fine. What I liked the most was that after a difficult start, we did better. We played better. We forced Madrid to play our style. In the first half, we lacked rhythm. We knew how to break the lines and we had possession, but we lacked speed. In the first half we missed the chance to score more goals. In the second half, when we played more, we were more tired. It is in these matches that we learn the most.
It was an ode to football….
To have a good match, you have to play well. Congratulations to everyone. No one spared their efforts, no one wasted their time. It was a tribute to football. No one wanted the other to receive a yellow card. And that’s to everyone’s credit. Everyone loved it. People at home, people on television. Everyone should be praised.
What has changed since August?
Getting started was complex. The transfer window was still open and we had some difficulties. In the Super Cup and Serie A. After that we progressed and today we had the chance to play against a team like Real Madrid.
