Roberto Soriano had a “dream” Italy debut against Croatia, albeit one he wasn’t expecting.
“It’s a great day for me, as it has always been a dream for me to play with the Italy squad,” he told Rai Sport after the 1-1 draw.
Roberto Soriano had a “dream” Italy debut against Croatia, albeit one he wasn’t expecting.
“It’s a great day for me, as it has always been a dream for me to play with the Italy squad,” he told Rai Sport after the 1-1 draw.
“I came on due to Pasqual’s injury, but tried to settle in as quickly as possible. I got a few early touches wrong, but tried to put them behind me and focus.
“It was not easy to come off the bench with little warning for my debut, but it was an emotional experience.”
Sampdoria” data-scaytid=”7″>Sampdoria midfielder Soriano was born and raised in Germany, growing up in the Bayern Munich academy.
“This was a very important moment for my career, but I hope that it’s just the beginning. I will try to give my all in matches and in training.
“Some of the lads reassured me and said not to worry, as they knew it was my Italy debut and I’d had little time to prepare.
“We know Croatia have a great midfield and would cause us problems there, but we also did well to soak up pressure and in my view it was a good point.”
Having played most of today’s match, it’s likely Soriano will not be used in Tuesday’s friendly with Albania at Marassi – Sampdoria’s home stadium.
“I have been living in Genoa for five years, so it would be wonderful to play there, but this was the most important game and was worth three points.”