Italian goalkeeper, Michele Di Gregorio, who started for Bournemouth against AC Milan, was interviewed by Sky Sport to discuss his team's 3-0 victory over Amorim's 'Diavolo' team.
You had started very well even before Maignan's sending-off...
“We were playing at home tonight and we knew it was a very important match, against a top-level opponent. We all know Milan, but our mentality doesn't change: we wanted to approach the match with our ideas and our style, being aggressive regardless of how the incidents unfolded.”
Milan had zero shots on target: did you feel cold in goal tonight?
“Yes, a little tonight! But I have to thank my teammates: the truth is that when the goalkeeper doesn't concede a goal, it's always thanks to the work of the whole team, so I can only thank them.”
Did Palladino call you?
“No, the fact that we were together doesn't mean anything. We definitely have a good relationship: he might watch the matches of his players from those years in Monza. We're fond of him as a coach and we follow him, but beyond that, nothing.”
What did you find different in England?
“I think the big difference is that here in England, all the teams want to play with their own identity and their own ideas about football, understood as entertainment and a propensity to attack. They have a completely different intensity from Italy. This leads to much more open matches against anyone, because even in the Premier League, if you play against a team at the bottom of the table or a team that is struggling, you risk losing or winning by a huge margin, precisely because everyone brings their own tactical beliefs onto the pitch, regardless of the opponent. I think this is the big difference. It was definitely a major change for me. The difference is there, but I think the intensity is the most different thing of all. I've seen this here since day one: an insane intensity, incredible grit and a ferocious attack on loose balls that I'd never seen before.”
What don't you miss about Italy?
“Even though I'm here, I still follow some things, and I'm sad that, unfortunately, nothing ever changes, or at least we can't improve. But this is football, these are unfortunately the rules that surround us, and there's nothing we can do but play along, so that's how it is. What I'm missing for now, thank God, is nothing, neither for me nor for my family. We're having a great time here; we've been welcomed like a dream, so for now, everything's fine.”
