Dejan Savićević, former star of Silvio Berlusconi's AC Milan in the 1990s and current President of the Montenegro Football Federation, spoke about the passing of the former Rossoneri club president and owner to La Gazzetta dello Sport, which is out today. Here are his statements.
On Silvio Berlusconi:
"The President was truly like a second father. He loved me. I loved him too. I will bid him farewell for the last time, it was a difficult departure. I spoke with Daniele Massaro and told him that I could take a plane at 11:00. And he advised me to wait because it's a State Funeral, there are rules and security restrictions. Okay, I understand. Then they called me back and at that point, I left by car, from Podgorica to Milan. Today, I will be there in the Duomo, I can't miss it."
On what Silvio Berlusconi meant to Savićević:
"I said it, a second father. It may sound like a strong, exaggerated word. But it's true. I felt that he loved me, respected me, defended me. Sometimes even too much..."
On an anecdote he recalls:
"I made some mistakes and I was wrong, but he fixed everything and told me to stay calm, to be patient. Once, against Anderlecht, I refused to go to the bench. It created a mess, Capello got angry. Berlusconi sided with Fabio, but he also said that Dejan needs to be understood. 'He's a genius and he suffers because he's not playing'."
On the times Savićević went to the bench:
"You know, I wanted to play. It's true, at 17 years old, I refused the bench and told the Budućnost coach, 'Either I play or I go to the stands.' At 21 years old, I told Osim, the national team coach, 'If you call me up, make sure I play, otherwise, I'll stay home.'"
If he ever said something similar to Capello:
"No, never. I wanted to play, play, and play. They signed me for that in 1992. But it didn't go that way, I waited a long time, I suffered."
On his transfer to Milan in 1992, Savićević said:
"Milan was the top in Europe. True, I was supposed to go to Juventus, then to Roma, then to Monaco in France. I was at Crvena Zvezda, we had won the Champions League, beat Marseille in Bari. I was supposed to win the Ballon d'Or, but they gave it to Papin. He lost the final, came in second, but he was French. Do you understand?"
On joining Milan in a last-minute blitz:
"Yes, it was a quick thing. I know there was interest from Juventus. Ariedo Braida, a great executive, came to Belgrade and I signed. It was all very easy. Braida was happy and said, 'Good, good, no problem, Dejan.'"
On confessing the desire to leave to Berlusconi:
"I told him, but he told me to stay calm. Capello played me very little, also because there were Gullit, Van Basten, and Rijkaard in front of me. So he would send me on the field for twenty minutes. And I would tell him, 'Let me play 5-6 complete matches in a row, and then you'll see if I'm Milan material. If I'm not, I'll leave.' There were offers, I wasn't a newcomer."
On when Savićević became 'The Genius of Montenegro' at Milan:
"After some time and many problems with the language, the relationship with the city, the food, the teammates, the different league. The President and Boban helped me a lot. Zvone used to tell me, 'Dejan, don't act foolishly, you're stronger than everyone, don't leave. You'll see, you'll play and then you'll tear everything apart.'"
On the 1994 Champions League final against Barcelona, with his goal and Berlusconi becoming the Prime Minister:
"Almost thirty years have passed. But it's true, certain things, certain emotions cannot be forgotten. We played against Barcelona, we were the underdogs, written off. And yet, we won 4-0..."
On what Berlusconi told him after that match:
"He wasn't there. He had just been elected Prime Minister. He called me the day before the match and said, 'Dear Dejan, they say you're a Genius. Well, prove it against Barcelona.'"
On the outcome of the match after that phone call:
"Yes, well, it went well. It was perhaps the most beautiful final. And when I think of that goal, I always remember my Milan, Berlusconi, that wonderful environment. We became like that because of him, our great President."
