After being included in the deal for Radja Nainggolan at the end of June, Niccolo’ Zaniolo continued to make a name for himself with his first selection to Italy’s senior squad followed by his professional debut at the Santiago Bernabeu against Real Madrid. The Roma midfielder played for the Azzurri’s Under 21 team tonight, and after the match against Tunisia he spoke to GianlucaDiMarzio.com: “Being selected to the Under 21 is a great honor. In the first match against Belgium, I played a half hour and it was too bad we lost. Today instead we played a good match and we deserved to win”
Zaniolo described his approach in this phase of his career: “I try to make myself available when the coach calls. During the training sessions I want to show I deserve playing in a match. When I played against Real Madrid I kept thinking I should do what I know because playing against these champions is a big honor, you can learn by playing against them”
Zaniolo was asked about playing in Rome and what he thinks is his best position: “It’s an honor to play in a team and city that are so prestigious. I practice everyday and I hope to do my best and hopefully I will get more opportunities. Would I go on loan in January? I think of the matches we have and to improve that is all. Can I play in midfield or as a trequartista? I can do both. If the managers tells me to play as a wing back, I’ll do it because my passion is to play football and there are no roles, in the end you go on the pitch and do what you can”
