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El Shaarawy: “We know how important the Derby is.”

John Solano
I

Roma attacker Stephan El Shaarawy gave an interview in the latest edition of the AS Roma Match Program. These are his words:

How do you feel a few days after Italy-Sweden?
After not qualifying for the World Cup, I’m very disappointed and sorry for what happened. Obviously nobody expected it to end like this. It was a great disappointment not only for us but for all Italians. At the stadium, there was a surreal atmosphere until the very end. I’m bitter, but you have to restart things and try to look ahead.



An era closes with Buffon, Barzagli and De Rossi.
Yes, the three of them have given a lot to the Azzurri shirt and not qualifying does not erase how much good they’ve done. They have made Azzurri history, they won a World Cup and, for this, we have to thank them. Personally, I have to say thank you for how they welcomed me when I joined the national team, they helped me a lot. They have always worked with great professionalism despite having won so much, with great humility. We will miss them a lot. I’ll feel the absence of Daniele the most (in the team), but that’s why I’m happy to have him at Roma still. For me, he is a point of reference: as a player but, above all, as a man, he’s a personality who can lead the group and does so with great charisma. I’m really happy I get to continue to play alongside him.

The Derby?
The Derby is always a very special and very well-received match. We know how important it is, not just to us players, but for the entire environment: the city and the fans. We’ve had over a week to prepare, so it will be a match full of intensity and we must do well and gain continuity after our last string of performances. The full stadium will be an additional reason to try to do well.

Match Center

MatchDay 30
1 Apr 17:00
Lecce
LEC
Roma