South African International midfielder Rafiloe "Fifi" Jane provided interesting insights on her career, her future, what went wrong on the last two games of AC Milan Women and what to expect from the next game against Empoli in a interview for Milan TV.
Here the complete interview:
On playing at AC Milan
"Honestly I feel honored to be with AC Milan for the second season, we’ve been working really hard as a group, and I know the efforts of the technical team has put in and the task that they have in their hands and I feel very blessed to be part of Milan also in the second part of the Season."
On the last games
"The last two games didn’t go our way. Every time we go out, we go out to win and to represent Milan and to play our best. And with the defeat that we got, we need to stay positive and focused on the next game, taking one game at time."
On her take on those games
"In my opinion in the previous games that we lost, especially in the derby, the plan didn’t go our way, we need to also give credit to Inter, they're a good team, as we are, and when we play, we play to win and it’s just unfortunate that this didn’t go our way."
On the next fixture
"The game against Empoli is also going to be a difficult one, we know they're a good team, like any other team in the league, so it's a good chance for us to redeem ourselves as a team and to focus on the positives that we were going out there to get."
On her career
"Training in Manchester I realize that playing football is what I want to do. It was where I realized my dream was being a footballer, and when I moved to Australia where I played for Canberra United, it was my first professional contract and with that I learned how it is to be a professional, how to behave and how to play at the highest level."
On what felt like playing at San Siro
"Playing at San Siro has always been my dream and I know it’s every footballer’s dream to pay at such an iconic stadium and despite the results that we got against Juventus, I think we played well as a team and those memories will always stay with us despite the defeat. You always want to play in the best stadiums you always want to play in the best countries and to be given that opportunity by Milan and i will always be grateful."
On defending South Africa National team at the 2019 World Cup
"Playing at the 2019 Women's World Cup it was a dream come true especially for the country we've been trying to qualify for the longest of time and when we finally did we are so happy as it is a nation you know we realize that we achieve a dream and we're giving also an opportunity to other youngsters to be able to dream because we realized that with perseverance, hard work and discipline, nothing is impossible."
On the Rafiloe Jane Foundation back in South Africa
"Growing up in Soweto I realize the challenges that we face as individuals, as the youth and more especially as girls, so having been through the challenges that we face I realize that, one day when I make it in football I want to give back to my community, I want to help some kids to achieve their dreams academically and also in football but most importantly to be good and good human beings who are welcomed and who really change their communities also. So when we decided to make a Rafiloe Jane Foundation we decided that would be our main focus to empower the young girls, so that they can aspire and be important people in their communities and also feed back to their Community."
On her future
"After my football career, I'm hoping to give back to the community and I hope to help back into young talents and I want to use my experiences that I've gotten in football to change people's lives."
On her nickname
"The nickname Fifi is a cut from Rafiloe, so instead of saying the whole of Rafiloe, you just take the “Fi” and make it “Fifi”. So it's a shortage for Rafiloe."
Image credits: acmilan.com
