Right-back Rick Karsdorp was unveiled today by the Giallorossi at Pinzolo, here are his words:
Monchi begins: “Worthy of what I said yesterday about Gonalons, I’m extremely happy to have Rick here. This is a player who was courted by great clubs, he is here with us thanks to the effort of Roma. He is one of the transfers that has satisfied me the most and is a player with a great present and future ahead.”
Karsdorp: “Unfortunately, I can only address you in Dutch, because I do not speak Italian yet. I really want to get started, the holiday has been too long, I’m working hard to get back into shape. As you can see, I entered the press room wearing a knee brace but I hope to this problem is resolved in 3-4 weeks. I want to give so much to this club, I wanted to come here and I want to show this. Strootman? Kevin’s presence is very important to me, he advised me a lot to come to Roma, it was not a simple decision because I have always played for Feyenoord, I had some questions, but Kevin convinced me to come here. His presence will be important, but other teammates have greeted me well and are helping me.”
“A comparison? You know a little about my trajectory, I started off as an offensive midfielder and then at 20 I changed my role. It is difficult for me to make comparisons with great fullbacks, I just have to show what I can do on the pitch.”
Now Monchi: “Vela, Ben Arfa and Thauvin? They are all good names, but in my head, there are different names, we have talked to Di Francesco. To date, we are working on names that have not come out publicly, or at least not all. These three are good players, but they are not a priority of Roma at this time. More than the names themselves, what counts is that Roma has a competitive group.”
“Castan? Leandro, like Gyomber, is training with us here and we will wait until the end of the ritiro to make decisions. Decisions that lie with them first, as a matter of respect and professionalism. To date, they are Roma players, they are training with us, but at the end of the rotors we will make decisions.”
“Massara? The future is in the hands of Massara, it is his decision. In 17 years as a sporting director, I have found few people with the moral integrity and preparation that Ricky has. I am convinced that, until the very last second, he will work for the best interests of Roma. If we have to find a substitute, this is a decision we will take calmly and without hesitation, because Roma is able to handle these situations. Adding Italian and Roman elements to this roster is something I have in mind, but it is a medium to long term goal.”
