2 weeks ago
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Davide Calabria has admitted that the Milan derby is the game that he feels the most, and that he will be watching the game on Sunday from Greece.
Panathinaikos will travel to face Panserraikos on Sunday at 17:00 CET in Serres, on the outskirts of Central Macedonia. The bottom-placed team in the Greek league will host an ambitious Panathinaikos side, led by Rafa Benitez and with Calabria at right-back.
Benitez is the first Inter coach Massimiliano Allegri has faced in a Milan derby. It was November 2010, when Milan won 1-0 with a Zlatan Ibrahimović penalty. Calabria played many of them in the 2020s, before leaving to try a new experience away from his boyhood club.
After giving his all on the pitch against Panserraikos, he’s already thinking about settling in front of the TV so he doesn’t miss the Derby della Madonnina. He spoke to Il Milanista to preview the game.
Will you watch on Sunday?
“Since I’ve been here, I’ve seen them all, I haven’t missed a single one. It’s a shame about the goal my friend Pulisic almost scored in Parma.”
When did you first feel the emotion and tension of the derby?
“It entered my gut in the Primavera: it was January 2014, Pippo Inzaghi was coaching us. We were playing at Interello and the Curva Sud came to cheer and sing just for us. For a kid, having banners and cheering like that was a big deal.
“We won 2-0, Benedicic and Di Molfetta scored. I came on in the second half, winning that derby at our opponents’ home, with our fans, made me feel on cloud nine. That day I felt, I decided, that the derby was the match of my life, the most beautiful of all.”
What were the youth derbies like?
“Tough, intense, my toughest opponents were Dimarco , who was already highly rated at youth level, and Bonazzoli , who I saw hasn’t yet lost his habit of scoring against Milan…”
Do you remember your debut as a starter in the derby at San Siro?
“At 12:30, under Montella. Abate and De Sciglio had played in the first game, and in the return it was me and De Sciglio. I had just turned 20, I was tense, nervous, it was confirmation that it was the match I felt most strongly about. When Zapata equalized in the 97th minute, it was a relief.”
Why is it the best match of all?
“Because there’s respect, because we don’t kill each other in football terms, but there’s so much rivalry, we feel it like crazy. No city has our derby.
“There isn’t, with all due respect to everyone, a true, deep, traditional, and prestigious derby like the Milan derby, with all its history and all its titles. It’s the best derby of all.”
And when Giroud scored that brace in the Scudetto-winning season?
“I gave him the ball for the second goal. But we were confident that year… I was also captain… and the armband gave me some rituals, even though I’ve never been and am not superstitious.
“As soon as I stepped onto the pitch, I immediately had to look at the Curva. It made me feel proud to wear the armband and look at our fans; it thrilled me. Then my hand-off to Olivier was the icing on the cake.”
Sunday night you’ll be in Greece watching TV. Who do you pass the baton to, who do you ask to give you a great gift?
“I’m thinking about it… well… Chris Pulisic, he can do it. He started off great this year, then he got injured. But he’s an amazing guy, always serious, always calm, super available in the dressing room for the team. And he’s a great talent who’s too often underestimated. Come on, Chris…”
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