Empoli defender Daniele Rugani has had a 2014 to remember, and it promises to be only the beginning for this talented youngster.
A native of Lucca in Tuscany, Rugani grew up in the highly respected youth system of local club Empoli, spending 12 seasons passing through their ranks. In 2012, he was loaned out to Juventus and joined their Primavera squad, where he started regularly throughout the season. In 2013 Juventus bought half his playing rights but loaned him back to Empoli for the season, where he began making his mark in the senior team. Rugani and friends finished that season in style as they achieved promotion to Serie A. The co-ownership with Juventus was renewed, allowing the now 20-year-old defender to continue gaining experience as the first-team starter he had quickly become, this time at the highest level of Italian football. The finishing touch on Rugani’s decisive year came in November, when Azzurri manager Antonio Conte called him up to the senior national team for the first time.
UEFA.com’s Italian edition interviewed Rugani on Monday. The following interview was conducted by journalist Daniele Verri.
UEFA.com: In just one year you’ve gone from a player unknown to the general public, to one of the brightest prospects in Italian and European football. How would you describe your 2014?
Rugani: These have been twelve truly beautiful months, full of great satisfaction. We achieved promotion to Serie A here, which is every little boy’s dream. I made my debut in the highest level of the league and got called up to the senior national team. It was really a year to remember, full of milestones achieved on both a personal and team level. I think of it only as a point of departure, though, because I hope to stay on this same path and keep improving. Right now everything is going well and it might look like I’ve already become a great player, but I certainly don’t forget that just a year ago I was a real unknown. Through hard work and a desire to improve I’ve demonstrated – first to myself, and then to others – that it’s possible for me to reach important goals.
You’re living a magical experience with Empoli right now. Where can your team finish this season?
I don’t know exactly what our real objective can be, certainly it will be fundamentally important to maintain our mental clarity and humility all the way through the season. We’ve achieved a lot of important results in a row here, but we can’t allow that to change our attitude. We need to keep being ourselves, keep being Empoli, and judge based on results. There are positive moments as well as more difficult ones, but we need to remember that last year we were in Serie B and the year before that we were close to relegation to Lega Pro. We have to remember who we are and where we come from, and every time we walk out on the pitch we have to try to demonstrate something more than our opponents in terms of aggressiveness, concentration, organization, humility and sacrifice.
Empoli always demonstrate great organization on the pitch. This speaks well of the coach – what do you think of Maurizio Sarri?
Many of the positive aspects of this good period can be credited to our coach. It was he who gave us a real identity as a team; everyone on the field knows exactly what he needs to do. He’s a real drill sergeant, especially with us defenders – he manages the defensive phase of play with a maniacal attention. Mister Sarri is always prepared, charismatic, and able to get the best out of each of his players. I consider myself very lucky to be able to play for him. He always tells us, and we understand well, that our ability to get results and definitively avoid relegation depends largely on our solidity in defense, which is our job as defenders but also the whole team’s responsibility to pay attention to.
Sarri has always maintained that you are very mature for your age. What are Daniele Rugani’s special secrets for personal growth?
I don’t really have any particular secrets, and I’m more or less how they describe me, just a guy who has a desire to improve, humble but ambitious at the same time. When I reach an objective, or some personal satisfaction, though, I tend to see more the “negative” aspects of what I’ve done, the error more than the good play, and this might be somewhat my principal characteristic: I’m maniacal in my search to correct my defects and faults and this, together with the fact that I find myself in a great club with a fantastic coach, has permitted me to improve a lot.
If we’re talking about improvement and ambitions, then we can’t not touch on the subject of your future. It’s no secret that Juventus want you back on their team, what do you think of that? Are you ready for this next big leap?
I’m really honored by the attention, I think anyone would be pleased to be linked with Juventus. But having said that, I’m still only 20 and I have a long way to go. I hope one day to be good enough to deserve that sort of a move but first I have a lot of work to do. I want to do this work and if one day it happens that I play on a great team like that, I’d be really happy.
Can you list for us your three happiest moments in the league this year?
The most emotional moment was absolutely my first goal in Serie A, at Cesena, when we drew 2-2 and earned our first point of the season. Next I would rank my call-up to the national team, and finally my debut in Serie A with Empoli, when we lost 2-0 against Udinese: it was a special game for the whole team, since for many of us it was our first time playing in Serie A and there was a very particular energy in the atmosphere.
So now let’s talk about the national team. Back in March you made your debut with the Under-21s against Northern Ireland, by October you received your first call-up to Antonio Conte’s senior squad. How do you explain this meteoric rise?
Honestly I don’t really know. I must have impressed the coach somehow. Like I said before, for me it’s a point of departure, not one of arrival: it was a great moment, but I’m aware that to stay in the senior team is difficult. You’re competing with players who’ve been in Serie A for ten years and who have participated in World Cups and European championships, on the other hand I’ve not done much yet and still have everything to learn. The same things I said about Juventus apply here: I hope to one day have improved enough to really deserve the spot, and with that ambition I’m working hard today to be able to be at that level one day in the future.
It’s well known that Conte is one of your great admirers, and that he was the one that wanted you at Juventus after watching you play in the Viareggio Cup. Do you think that will help you solidify an early spot with the Azzurri?
I don’t know, obviously that would make me very happy but I don’t think about it much. If it happened I would be the happiest guy in the world, but I know I still have a lot of steps to take along the way and a lot of training to do. I’m calm and focused on what’s in front of me. The national team is a dream for me, and one that I hope one day to deserve.
One dream that could be realized without too many big surprises would be to see you as a key player in the Under-21 European championships in 2015 in the Czech Republic. Where do you think Di Biagio’s team can finish in that competition?
We ended up in a very difficult group so it won’t be easy, but it’s a tournament we’ll all give our all for. It would be great to qualify for the Olympics, to participate in those Games would be one of those things that happens once in a lifetime. It’s an unrepeatable opportunity and we will all give everything to make the best of it. I think we can play with anyone there, obviously we won’t start as favorites but we can certainly make our mark, and we probably will.
Then on the horizon are the UEFA European Championships in 2016 in France. By then you will be almost 22 years old: do you think you will be ready to take part in that sort of tournament?
It would be a dream, and sometimes dreams come true. It will take dedication and faith, and there’s everything to be done to make this possibility a reality. In my case, similar things have already happened, so I will continue to dream and work so that my dreams can become reality.
The post A 2014 to remember: Daniele Rugani appeared first on Italian Football Daily.
from Italian Football Daily http://www.italianfootballdaily.com/2014-remember-daniele-rugani/
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