Andrea Conti interview: “I’m retiring. Gasperini is the best”

We are republishing the interviews most appreciated by readers of the Gazzetta dello Sport in 2025. The one with Andrea Conti was published on 18 April.

As soon as the video call opens, Andrea Conti’s eyes strike you. Sad, as if they had lost vitality. Off, so much so that they seem to have given up too. “There’s nothing worse than when you realize it’s over. But accepting it becomes the only way to move forward.” It will remain a big what if. For years Andrea lived an ordeal, a continuous struggle with that knee which slowly became a nightmare and torment. “There isn’t a day in my life when I don’t think about it. It comes to mind every moment, it influences my every movement, even the most banal.” 2017 is the year in which he realizes dreams in Serie A: the goals against Atalanta in Serie A with Gasperini, the transfer to Milan, the debut at San Siro, the senior national team and a future that seemed to designate him as one of the great talents of Italian football. Until the cruciate rupture in September, after a handful of matches for the Rossoneri. The beginning of the end. That ligament that cracked twice in the space of nine months, becoming the toughest opponent to face and at the same time his greatest enemy. As if it were an attacker who dribbles away from you and you can’t do anything about it, except take note of the fact that he is faster. And start chasing. Conti spent the last eight seasons like this, dragged by the fear of getting hurt again, blocked, held back by the thought of never feeling like a footballer again. Until, at the age of 31, after a season as a free agent, he chose to say enough. Let’s start right here.

Have you really decided to stop?

“I’m exhausted, I’ve been struggling with physical problems, injuries and disappointments for years. I’ve been a free agent for a year and in the last 3 I’ve played just nine games. You have to be aware of your situation, I can’t take it anymore and this will be my final decision.”

“No, I’m saying it here at the Gazzetta. I’ll stop. I’m not the social media type, I never publish anything and I don’t think I will in this case.”

She said it too, in the last 3 years he played just over one hundred minutes, until he was released last summer. Did you feel abandoned by the world of football? As if everyone had forgotten about her?

“I lost hope. I knew that after the end of the contract with Samp it wouldn’t be easy and I’ve had confirmation of this in recent months, in which no one called me anyway. So it’s better to accept that it’s over and move on.”

Have you already decided what you will do in the future?

“No, I don’t know yet. I don’t want to make rash decisions, I just feel like saying that I still see myself in football. I’m a player on the pitch, maybe I’d like to coach, but it’s still too early to say. I’m still digesting that I’ll never play again. I’ve been unlucky in my journey, but I know that life doesn’t end here. I’ll definitely do something else. There’s no need to hide, even if it’s difficult to accept. It’s all mental work. A dream ends: but for me, lately, going to the pitch isn’t it was more of a joy. I dragged myself, it wasn’t me anymore.”

Was it distressing to fear that you would never return to your previous levels?

“Every moment after my first injury I was afraid of not knowing what would become of me, of my path, of my future. It’s as if it were a ghost that has always accompanied me. When you’re a footballer you’re aware of running into similar risks, but then it happens to you in the best moment of your life and… it changes it a bit. I can say that I stopped playing due to the many injuries. With another destiny, who knows where I would be now…”.

Do you think a lot about how it would have gone if…?

“Yes, if I have to be honest, I do it all the time. I think about why the others are on the pitch and I’m on the sofa. Over time I’ve learned to live with it, but it’s something that sends you into crisis. You make comparisons, you look for answers that don’t exist. And I believe it will be like this forever, these thoughts will never leave me.”

In many cases it is said that having a goal can be the driving force behind going back to how you were before. How did you experience it?

“After the first injury I had the intention of returning quickly, to demonstrate that I was still able to have my say. Then, unfortunately, things didn’t go well: as soon as I returned I hurt myself again and from then on it was just a succession of problems and continuous pain.”

Have you ever felt the need to talk to a psychologist?

“No, and it was a big mistake. The truth is, I never really realized how much I needed it. If I could go back, I definitely would. I probably would have been able to handle everything a little better.”

Can it be said that the knee has become his biggest opponent?

“Absolutely yes. There isn’t a day when I open my eyes and I don’t think about my knee. There isn’t a moment when I don’t pay attention to it. And I talk to her about life, not just while I’m playing. It stops me, it slows me down. An example? I can’t get down on my knees, I can’t bend over.”

Is there anyone in particular you felt abandoned by?

This is why I was sick for a long time. Football is a world that took me, cuddled me and then pushed me away and forgot me. In many things I was left alone, especially by those who said they loved me. Also because I think it’s easy to help you when you play for Milan, for the national team and everything goes well. It’s different when you fall, there you see who is really close to you. And I can count these people on the fingers of one hand, unfortunately.”

Let’s now move on to Milan. You arrived from Atalanta in the summer of 2017, what memories do you have?

“The first thing that comes to mind is the impact with Milanello. It was incredible. Just finding fans asking for photos, autographs, who were there under the sun for me. I felt a bit like I had landed on another planet. Like when before the match against Craiova there were 40 thousand people outside the stadium waiting for the bus.”

At Atalanta he exploded with Gasperini. Is he the best coach you’ve ever had in your career?

“Yes, I put him first. Personally, I owe him a lot and I can only speak highly of him: he massacres you in training, he pushes you to give everything, but then on the pitch on Sunday you reap the benefits. You fly and you don’t notice. Plus, you always know what to do without him telling you anything else. He’s not someone who talks much with the players, he doesn’t give excessive confidence but he always manages to strike the right chords when needed.”

It often happens that many players leave Atalanta and then don’t perform as well as before. How do you explain it?

“When you train with Gasperini you go at a thousand miles an hour and you work a lot. Then you change teams and the load is very different and it influences you a little. Then you add the pressure, the fact that you get paid a lot and the responsibilities increase. Many have not been able to handle all this. On a mental level it can be complicated.”

At Milan, however, he was coached by Pioli. What memories do you have?

“I had a great time with Pioli, even if I’m a little torn in my opinion. When he arrived at Milan I started playing all the time, then I got hurt again and from then on I disappeared for him. It was as if he didn’t see me. He never gave me an explanation, or anything. Let’s say it was a final slap, because I felt good.”

Milan and Atalanta face each other on Sunday, who will you cheer for?

“It puts me in difficulty. I have more friends in Atalanta, even if Milan was the team that made my dream come true. Then unfortunately it went the way it did. Sunday’s match will be a hard-fought match, I hope both can reach the Champions League. As for the result, I’ll get away with a draw.” For the record, it ended 1-1…