Inter defender Matteo Darmian has admitted that AC Milan played a huge part in helping him become the player that he is today, calling the academy ‘a school of life’.
Darmian will star in the 2024 European Championship with Luciano Spalletti’s Italy, and he is likely to compete with Giovanni Di Lorenzo for the right wing-back position after another brilliant season with Inter.
The Nerazzurri ended up capturing the Scudetto and for Darmian that moment came against his former club as Inter won the derby at San Siro in April to mathematically clinch the league title.
The former Manchester United man was interviewed by Corriere della Sera and he spoke about how important it was for his career to have grown up in the youth team of a club different from the others in Milan.
Do you have work ethic from within or is it learned?
“It is also partly thanks to my parents who passed on important values to me, such as sacrifice. And when I joined Milan as a kid it was a school of life, not just football. You learn to be in a group, to respect the rules, your team-mates, your coaches. You grow as a person.”
Do you ever think about when you went to Milanello in a minibus or accompanied by your grandfather?
“Yes, think back to the sacrifices made by the whole family: I have to be very grateful to my parents and grandparents.”
Why did you write in a test before the Milan trial that you wanted to be a pizza chef and not a footballer?
“Because the specific question was ‘if you didn’t become a footballer, what would you like to do?’. They were already making us think of an alternative.”
