Fikayo Tomori has stressed that he is feeling happy and settled at AC Milan, and looks forward to a potential rematch against Chelsea in the future.
The Englishman joined the Rossoneri from Chelsea on an initial loan deal back in January having come through the Cobham academy of the London club but falling out of favour under Frank Lampard. He impressed so much that he earned a permanent move to Mian, for a figure widely reported to be in the region of €28m.
His excellent form has continues as Stefano Pioli’s side have conceded just once in the opening three games of the Serie A season and he also put in a warrior-like performance at Anfield against Liverpool.
Tomori spoke during an interview with DAZN in the first episode of their new ‘Culture’ series, giving a background on his upbringing and also discussing how he feels now he is a permanent Milan player, with his comments transcribed by MilanNews.
On his name: “It is of Nigerian derivation. My first name means ‘God has filled me with joy’. It is a phrase: in Nigeria, parents often choose a phrase that gives the child a name.”
On his nationality: “I feel very Nigerian. When I was little my parents spoke to me in Youruba, the ethnic group I belonged to. My favourite food is Jollof rice, a kind of rice stew; I don’t know how to describe it, but it is a very tasty dish, very African, very strong.”
On moving to Canada: “When my mother was 22-23, my father moved to England and my mom took a trip to Canada to see a friend; my father visited her, they were already together by that point and I was born. I moved to England as a child, even though I returned to Canada every year; I have many family friends there: when I think of Canada, only good things come to mind.”
On the national team: “At first I was playing for Canada. I played the first game in Mexico, then the following March against England in England; there were many of my team-mates and friends, including Aina and Rashford: we had played together on Saturday and then I challenged them with the national team, and we also won.”
On his friendship with Tammy Abraham if Roma: “I’m very happy for him. We talk almost every day. We started playing for Chelsea when I was 7 and then we got to the First Team: that’s where you want to go when you grow up , but you don’t know if it will ever happen. I remember when I scored the first goal and he scored a hat-trick: it was the best day of our life ”
On Milan: “Going back to Chelsea with him? Now I feel great at Milan, I love Milan. Obviously Chelsea have been a very important part of my life for 15 years and I managed to realise my dreams by playing in all competitions, but now I am very happy at Milan and I am happy with what we are doing; now we also have the Champions League at last and maybe we can win it like Chelsea.”
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