Federico Bernardeschi says Antonio Conte wants the Azzurri to 'press the man, but not lose unity when out of possession'.
The 22-year-old made the squad for this month's Euro 2016, a remarkable feat as he only had his Azzurri debut this March in a friendly against Spain.
“Yes, I think I'm a surprise of the call-ups,” he told the Press. “I work for the future. My idol was [Andriy] Shevchenko, but I try to learn from all of the champions that I see and that I have the privilege of playing with.
Federico Bernardeschi says Antonio Conte wants the Azzurri to 'press the man, but not lose unity when out of possession'.
The 22-year-old made the squad for this month's Euro 2016, a remarkable feat as he only had his Azzurri debut this March in a friendly against Spain.
“Yes, I think I'm a surprise of the call-ups,” he told the Press. “I work for the future. My idol was [Andriy] Shevchenko, but I try to learn from all of the champions that I see and that I have the privilege of playing with.
“My father was always very critical with me, but he helped me grow. I am tough on myself too, in training and in matches.”
Bernardeschi was only 12 when Italy won the World Cup in 2006, a moment he remembers distinctly.
“We were all gathered in the square in front of the giant screen. We were supporting our nation, not just the Nazionale. We stood behind all of our champions. That victory was a very emotional moment.
“Conte expects us to press on the man and create numerical superiority, but he also wants us to remain united when we don't have the ball.
“I think there's a lot of quality both individually and collectively. There are many young players like me, we need to integrate ourselves well.”
The 22-year-old's first game with the senior national team as a starter came in the friendly last March against Germany, but the result was a disappointing 4-1 defeat.
“Later I thought about that game a lot. I analysed it on my own, but also with the Coach and the teammates. I think we were lacking something to hurt the opponents.
“The result was bad, not our play. When you're on the pitch you can sense a level of nuance that isn't quite perceptible from outside.”
Finally, Bernardeschi was reminded of the return of Pantaelo Corvino as the sporting director of Fiorentina, but he made no special comment about his future on the market.
“We heard each other, we're always going to be in touch. I'm glad he's back.”