After making his mark in Serie A and achieving international success, Emerson Palmieri returned to talk about his experience with Roma, the club he played for from 2015 to 2018 before continuing his career in the Premier League and now in Ligue 1, with Marseille.
In an interview with calciomercato.com, the Brazilian left-back, now a naturalized Italian, emotionally recalled the years he spent in the capital.
“I experienced many wonderful moments there,” he said. “On a footballing level I can say that I shared the dressing room with Francesco Totti.”
“Playing with him puts a bit of pressure on me by default. But he reassured me; he’s a very helpful person and open to dialogue.”
“Last matchday of the 2013/14 season, Roma-Palermo. I came on in the second half, and after the match Walter Sabatini approached me: ‘I didn’t know you, congratulations.’ At the end of the season I returned to Santos, and I was already on vacation, but after 15 days my agent called me and told me Sabatini wanted me at Roma.”
“Sabatini was the person who changed my life. Looking back, I see a 19-year-old who wasn’t getting much playing time at Palermo and was sidelined for two months due to injury. In these cases, the player might return to Brazil or go to another country. In my case, Roma called. It was a strange journey.”
