Davide Calabria has spoken about the pride he feels to captain AC Milan, and congratulated fellow academy graduate Tommaso Pobega for his first goal.
Milan had not won a home Champions League game for nine, and the game against Dinamo Zagreb was be the right moment to end that hoodoo as Stefano Pioli’s side ran out 3-1 winners thanks to goals from Olivier Giroud, Alexis Saelemaekers and Tommaso Pobega.
The last time the Rossoneri won three points at San Siro in the Champions League dates back to 13 September 2013, when Milan defeated Celtic 2-0 thanks to an own goal by Emilio Izaguirre and a goal from Sulley Muntari, but now the home fans can celebrate a big triumph.
Calabria was interviewed by Sky after the game to discuss the victory and the performance from the Rossoneri, with his comments relayed by MilanNews and translated below.
What does it mean to experience this evening as AC Milan captain?
“It means a lot, the Champions League victory at home had been missing for several years. It was important to bring home the 3 points both for the group and for our self-esteem.”
How would your assess your personal growth?
“I have never stopped working and believing in myself, there are times when you do less well and times when you do very well. I didn’t let myself get down, I continued to work hard and now you can see the results. The team has also changed and the quality has increased.”
How is your nose after the collision?
“Let’s see the doctor later, as long as I can stand up it’s okay (laughs).”
Do you have a dream for this year?
“I take this opportunity to congratulate Tommy (Pobega) who scored a beautiful goal: it is always right to underline when a product from the academy scores a goal in the Champions League.
“I don’t want to set limits, we are a young team and on paper a bit inferior to others, but for the group that exists and what we do together, setting a limit seems reductive to me. We want to win all the games, we put our heart and soul into it every day to bring home the three points. We will see later.”
