Quotes from Alessandro
Del Piero
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"I am a lucky guy. First
of all because I do the work I like and I can dedicate myself entirely
to it. This is the fundamental thing. Then there's the salary, the fact
that I became famous, but these are just the consequences."
"At the age of 13 I signed
my first contract and I went to live at Padova, where I shared an apartment
with other ten boys. There, if there's no real passion, you give up everything.
Training and studying, there was little time to be sad. Maybe at night..."
"The result you have on the
field isn't only the result of the practices: the food, the sex, the women,
the nights on the disco, the wifes and the kids: everything is part of
a serenity that a player must reach to give his best, but he can also find
it living by himself."
"Regarding my relationship
with money, my father was an electrician and now he's retired. My mother
is a housekeeper. At home we started to make calculations in the beginning
of the month to see if with dad's salary we'd get to the 27th. Let's understand:
me and my brother never lacked anything. But, remembering those times,
now I don't waste the money. And I'll never thank my parents enough for
how much they've done for me. To the other kids I want to say: those who
don't sow don't harvest, don't wait for gifts from life. It also takes
luck, it's true. But the luck isn't blind: you have to deserve it. I was
only 13 when I got transferred to Padova, by myself: I trained, I studied,
I played. I wanted, I really wanted, to become a champion. But it wasn't
easy."
"Regarding cooking, I can
handle it, I don't starve, though I frequently eat at restaurants, sometimes
I invite friends at home and cook myself."
"When I like a girl, I don't
just see if she has beautiful eyes or a nice behind. There must be that
'something'."
"At the time I have no wedding
coming. I am not even engaged. I have time. And now I have to think about
football, most of all."
"As for me, I don't have
in mind a perfect woman. Maybe it doesn't exist. I have to notice if a
girl will give me love, the true love, where the feelings are true. For
me, this is the most important."
(On what
Italian actress Valeria Marini said about him: "My ideal man is
Del Piero. He's intelligent,
he didn't let the success affect his mind. And
his shyness makes him still
more intriguer".)
.
"Baggio left Juve, right
after that, Vialli and Ravanelli did the same, then Vieri and Boksic walked
away. I thought: 'Alex, you dreamed with a similar responsibility when
you played back home'. It was an important occasion, for me, and I never
wanted to go back. It was a challenge even for me. I believe I have won
it. But the tests, in the life and in the football, will never end. But
if anyone considers me as the symbol of Juve, I say thanks: I'll try to
be worth it."
"Once, before the Intercontinental
final in Tokio, someone said that I was an average player, and I got very
mad. I just put my head down and worked hard. But now I don't feel like
I'm in the top of the pyramid: you can and you must always improve, specially
when you're only 23, like me. I don't envy anybody, not even Ronaldo, who
we call 'phenomenon'. He's a great player, it's true. But if you get jealous
of someone, they will say that there's no confidence enough in yourself.
I am not Baggio's inheritor not the Italian Ronaldo. I am Del Piero."
.
"In my
opinion I think that I have never been so good since I got injured. Thanks
fans I am back again."
"Of
course I am not sure about playing as regular but If Ancelotti decides
to leave me on the bench I will be sad and disappointed. Currently I do
not feel myself being the best player as I did not feel the worse when
I had been playing bad."
.(March
16, 2001, after being without talking to the press for about a month)
.
.
"I'm happy
for the team and for myself. It was a very important victory which has
taken place in a very difficult week for me."
.(On
the goal against Bari, which came after his father's death. February 18,
2001)
.
.
"For the
moment I'm a Juventus player and if the club wants to keep me for next
season, I'm happy."
"But
this football is different from the old football, so it's impossible say
now if I will go or if I will stay. We will see in a few months, maybe
in a few weeks."
.(About
the fact that he may leave Juve in 2001. January 30, 2001)
.
.
"Christian
reaction it's normal for his character. I know how much hard work it takes
to come back to the highest level. But I'm sure he will conquer the San
Siro supporters again."
.(About
Inter supporters who booed Vieri, after he got back from another long injury.
January 15, 2001.)
.
.
"Of
course the goal is useful, it gives you enthusiasm and joy, and it makes
you do a better work during the week. However, I was aware of my progresses:
they were constant, progressive".
"You
ask me if I am satisfied with myself and I will always answer no. Because
this is how I am made: I won't be satisfied even after a hat-trick, and
I am very happy with this part of my being".
"The
people have supported me even after my mistakes. I believe they do it because
they understand the difficulties and realize that there's the will to overcome
them".
"The
kick on the flag has been the unburdening of the match, for a result that
never came, for the three shots on the post".
(After
the match against Piacenza. The last quote refers to his kick on the little
corner flag, during his goal celebration. November 1st, 1999)
.
"The victory against Roma
was important because it came about due to our great determination and
will to win. We deserved to win and the fact that we picked up three points
against a big club like Roma is particularly important. We now have to
continue like this, we need consistency."
"Roma has been an important
stage from the phisical, mental and nervous point of view. I am progressing
more and more, but right now it takes time."
(After the
away Serie A match against Roma, where Juve won 1-0 and played very well.
October 18, 1999)
.
“The whole side played badly,
and I played worse than anyone. We did create the odd chance, but it was
not enough. We played really badly and that is all there is to it. Do I
think that our problem is mental or physical? I don’t know, but whichever
it is we must sort it out soon.”
(After a shock
defeat against Lecce, when the Bianconeri lost 2-0 in an away match.
September 26, 1999)
"One of the opposition wanted
to swap shirts with me, but I said I wouldn’t. I wanted to keep it as something
to remember the game by."
.(After
his first official match of the 99/00 season, where he scored a goal against
Russian opposition Rostov. August 4, 1999)
"This was just another hurdle
to overcome, a small step towards the objective I want to reach. I don't
say that because I am behind, but because I want to make even bigger strides."
.(On
his return to the fields, after nine months out, where he scored a goal.
July 19, 1999)
"I'm very, very happy. The
club and I are going to work together, not just from the competitive point
of view but also in terms of the image. I know I have signed something
very important for my life: five years mean everything and includes the
period of my maturity and yet the desire to stay at Juve has always been
stronger than the problems that I have had to solve to bring this difficult
negotiation to an end."
"The same goes for the fans,
I don't think I'll have to win them over again. It's just a pity that certain
team-mates and friends have gone. I'll have to find another room-mate now
that Di Livio's gone. It'll be my second goal after getting back on the
pitch..."
"I still believe in loyalty
even if many players no longer do. I don't think I'm old-fashioned just
because I'm tying myself to Juventus for a total of eleven years, on the
contrary. I'm certain that wearing this shirt is my one great wish and
I wouldn't do it if I didn't know that the club wants it too - they've
shown they want to invest in me."
.(In
the press conference he gave after signing his 5-year contract with Juventus.
June 29, 1999)
"The worst was during the
matches especially during the home games. You can see your fans in the
stadium, your friends are there and you can't play - it's very painful"
"Which is the player I feel
most comfortable with? Definitely Di Livio. I played with him in Padova,
I have had to bear him for eightyears... Which player would I give an Oscar
to? I have always liked Weah, without a doubt"
.(May
17, 1998.)
"Everything. Not in this
order, the training, tension, goals, tickets, travels, games. Even the
fouls from the defenders"
.(When
asked what he missed the most in these months he's not playing.)
"There are too many inferior
foreigners compared to the Italians and the national team is damaged"
.(Both
from April 2, 1999.)
"We're studying an important
contract renew, for five years, that corresponds to a life choice for me"
(April 1, 1999)
"He's a very simple and unpretentious
boy"
.
(When asked what's he like outside the playing field. March, 1999)
"I was very surprised. But
it's his decision and you have to accept it."
"I'd like to stress we always
backed him, never let him down and always played flat out for him."
(On Marcello
Lippi's resign. February 8, 1999.)
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