In the newest episode of 'Gameplay', Former Chelsea centre-back, Fikayo Tomori, has spoken about many matters. Here are his words to the microphones of Milan TV.
On feeling like a total defender:
"I would say yes. I try to adapt my game according to the opponents I face, opponents who have strengths and characteristics different from mine. I do my best to always add something to my game. I learn from what I see, improving as much as possible. I strive to become that complete defender, and it's difficult in modern football because there are so many aspects to defending and so many elements that can change in a second during the match. I try to improve as much as possible in every game, to be the best version of myself."
On his beginnings as a defender, Tomori stated:
"I believe like most players, everyone starts in attack and wants to score goals. I also started there and then when I was about 13 or 14 years old, I started playing more as a central defender. Then at 16 or 17, I only played as a central defender, and that's how I grew into the role. As I said before, I had certain characteristics that allowed me to do very well as a central defender, probably more than I would have done in another role, like in attack. As I said before, my speed and how I gained more experience in reading the game, the mentality to try to help the team. That's a quality I've had since I was little: being very fast in running and being able to recover. Since I was little, I've always had the mentality of wanting to be the one who saves the situation. As a defender, I have many opportunities to do that. That's how I started, and it's like I felt made for this role in modern football."
On improvements gained in Italy, Tomori said:
"I believe that coming here, I realized the attention given to details in defending, and how important it is not only to defend alone but to do it together with your teammates, knowing where the team is or where the opponents are. These are things that in England I did more instinctively than now where I have to think more about where I am compared to the team, the ball, and where we are on the field, and where the opponents are. Coming to Italy allowed me to grow from this point of view, and it helped me not to rely solely on instinct, it allows me to think about the game and what might happen. Then there are moments in the matches where you have to play instinctively, when the ball bounces and ends up somewhere and you just have to react. I believe that the characteristics with which I was born are seen in those moments. Coming to Italy, the way I read the game has improved, and I tried to take as much as possible from different defenders, from the Mister, and from other coaches."
Tomori added:
"We build a lot from the back, we try to play the ball from defense often. Clearly, I don't play the ball all the way to the attack, apart from some passes, but the idea is to put the players with more technique in possession of the ball, like Reijnders, Bennacer, Adli, Leao, and Pulisic... the offensive players, trying to give them the ball as often as possible. This is something that as a team we all try to do, we all try to create spaces for others and make the game easier. So we can build and maintain possession to then control the game more. You can see that I play on the left and make many passes from here, from this area where we build and where sometimes the opponents tend not to press us. The idea is to give a solid base to the team, from which to build and be reliable with the ball."
On playing the ball a lot from defense:
"Yes, I think it's linked to being at the base of the team's game, being in the center where the ball often passes, being reliable with the ball and helping the team push forward. Helping the team in building and advancing. It's about being reliable in possession, using the ball well, making the right decisions. I believe this helps us move the ball forward and put the most decisive players in attack in a position to make a difference."
On his passing choices:
"There are many aspects. It depends on the opponents and how they press, or how we want to build. Then there are times when opponents do something we're not prepared for, something to try to surprise us. There are so many different matches, so many attackers, so many opponents with different defenses against which we have to play, like in the Champions League or Europa League or Serie A or Coppa Italia. We face so many different scenarios, in the end, it's about being prepared for every situation as best as possible. You have to know that anything could happen and you have to be ready. I want to improve in riskier passes, we'll see how it goes, it's something I'm working on and something I want to carry on for the rest of the season and also for my career."
On the instinct for scoring goals:
"I've worked to be more incisive inside the penalty area when we attack, but also more active when we defend trying to limit the opponents. Every time you score, you feel a fantastic sensation. I've scored three goals this season and I love these goals because they are like those of a forward, with the ball finding you because you're in the right place. I'm also happy because as a team we wanted to score more from set pieces, and the three I scored are. I want to score as many goals as possible, but my first task is to defend the goal."
On aggressive marking:
"I believe it has improved a lot since I've been here. I've always been someone capable of marking tightly, regardless of the size. I remember Fiorentina-Milan from my first year, it was a great match. I really like one-on-one duels with the attacker because it's a matter of concentration and showing what you can do. It's a mental battle, there are different scenarios, and you have to try to win many battles. If on the field you manage to play a game where you show your best qualities, it makes you seem very good and makes you feel good. In these kinds of matches, where I have to be aggressive and engage in speed battles, I can show my level."
On sliding tackles, Tomori said:
"It's a matter of experience and recovery. I've always been good at recovering quickly. It's a matter of timing, just looking at the ball and not the man, being careful to have the right angle for the tackle. This is something I've been doing forever."
On working with teammates in defense:
"It's something we work on in training, especially on the left side with Theo and Leao. I have to have the ability to understand when they move or when Theo moves to the center and I have space. We work on understanding spaces, it also depends on the opponents. Like against Torino who work one-on-one all over the field, Theo moves inside and I had the chance to open up on the left and escape the attacker's marking."
On the speed in modern football:
"The recovery against Juventus this year? Especially on corner kicks, you have to be ready to come back and cover. It's nice to be one of the fastest in the team. I like it (speaking of the speed in recovery)."
On saves in front of the goal:
"Do I feel the goal is threatened? Yes, obviously. You just have to defend the goal and get the ball away as soon as possible, it's also a matter of instinct. Being a defender involves sensing danger and where the ball might go. In these situations, I try to predict where the ball will go, that's the job I do."
On the incredible save against Newcastle, Tomori said:
"I believe it's my best save of my career. At that moment I had seen the development and had seen Almiron in front of me: I couldn't bypass him, so when I saw Joelinton shoot, it was just a matter of predicting where the ball would go. I tried to get my foot to the ball first, in the end, I hit it at the same time as Almiron did. I was just trying to get a body part to save the situation. Then we managed to win the match and that's the most important thing."
On hitting the post against Newcastle:
"Obviously, it's not my primary job. My primary job is to defend the goal, but when you see the space available, you have to exploit it. At that moment I tried to be too precise, it would have been nice to score. Then I was too tired after that run and I got fouled. This season I've already scored three goals and I believe it's the best performance in my career. It's something I need to work on, being dangerous also in the opponent's area. Having the opportunity to score goals is definitely a nice feeling."
Regarding the first goal in Serie A and the comparison with Cristiano Ronaldo's goal:
"Against Juventus, I scored the first goal with Milan and it was a moment full of pride. After a few days, I saw that everyone was talking about how I jumped higher than Cristiano Ronaldo (header goal against Sampdoria). Do I feel more superhuman than him? Cristiano has many records and I will never score as many goals as he did, in this aspect, he is definitely more superhuman than me. But in this jump, I managed to do better than him. Maybe one day I'll manage to do better, it's one of my goals... But for now, I'll keep this record."
On free-kick taking, Tomori said:
"I was scoring against PSG, but the defender intervened with his head. In training, we take free kicks, and I surprised my teammates. They didn't think I knew how to take free kicks. Theo Hernandez, Giroud, Adli, Bennacer, and Florenzi are specialists. This season we haven't scored from any free-kick, maybe only once or twice since I've been wearing the Rossoneri colors. I'm working on it, and I want to get involved, so it will be another arrow to add to my bow."
On the match against Tottenham in the Champions League:
"I believe it was my best performance. I had returned to London and my relatives were there, in addition to being the return of the Champions League after winning the first leg by one goal to zero. That challenge was very important, the whole team defended the lead from the first leg and achieved a clean sheet, showing solidity. We didn't manage to score, but we didn't concede goals. I was disappointed because I hadn't played the first leg due to injury, but in the return leg, I was determined not to waste what my teammates had done. I was very happy because we managed to advance to the next round, especially against a player like Kane."
Regarding future objectives, this is what Tomori had to say:
"I want to win trophies playing for Milan. We know the history of the club and we've written a first page with the Scudetto and now we have a team capable of winning more. I need to improve, not only for myself but also for the team."