Interview by Francesco Pietrella
Few strikers recently made such an impression upon their arrival in Italy as Pato. A piece of the Brazilian striker's heart stayed in Italy even after he left Milan as he told GianlucaDiMarzio.com in an exclusive interview:"Italy is my second home, I do miss it a bit. Return there? Never say never. I decided to return to Brazil back then to heal, it was the right decision at the time. Now my goals speak for themselves. I have always just looked forward. Always" He recently scored a goal for his Chinese club Guangzhou that was reminiscent of his famous one in the Champions League:"I cried, in that moment with that goal I understood I was back to being as good as when I was at Milan"
How has Pato settled in playing in China:"I felt out of place. I had an odd impact to this reality. I remember the first days, the language, the huge cities, the large distances, so many people everywhere and the different types of relationships. Little by little I understood that there's everything here to do well. You can feel the desire to grow together, not just with football but in every sector. In my free time I travel, I visit monuments, I walk, I inform myself, I use the Chinese social media a lot. And I do everything to know the culture and the Chinese cuisine in the best way possible"
Pato then discussed his time at Milan where he scored 63 goals in 150 matches and won a scudetto and an Italian Super Cup:"Maybe things could have gone differently. I have many memories, it's impossible to pick just one. I'll never forget my first few days at Milanello and the scudetto, but also the many teammates that were champions and the friendships that I started there. When I arrived I was a teenager and there was a Brazilian nucleus, I was like in a family. I was very close to Kaka', Ronaldinho, Emerson, Thiago Silva but also the Italians like Gattuso and Maldini"
Pato has still close ties to Milan:"They sent me the new jersey, I posted on Instagram and I was bombarded by messages. I'm very happy with all this affection. I'm very grateful to president Berlusconi for always believing in me. Now that Milan has Chinese owners it's nice to see how many fans they have in China, this is also thanks to the victories and the campions from the 30 years with Berlusconi and now there are Chinese owners, this creates curiosity and expectations"
