Juve, Locatelli: “What a nuisance Cuadrado! Di Maria unique”

“I’ve always dreamed of playing for Juventus and seeing my surname behind this shirt, as well as being an honor, pushes me to always give something extra every game,” said Juve midfielder Manuel Locatelli, as well as the new father of Theo, live on Twitch.

Then, immediately, a little market curiosity: “Juve already wanted me the year before, to be clear the season in which the pandemic broke out. In the end, I arrived the following year, more mature and with a European win on shoulders”.
The strongest opponent?
“Without a shadow of a doubt I say Messi because he’s beyond any kind of human logic. He’s the strongest player I’ve played against”.

The best goals in your career?
“The best goal with the black and white shirt is the one I scored against Turin in my first Derby della Mole, also and above all because it was decisive. Clearly, then, I can’t fail to mention the goals at the European Championship with the Italy shirt because they were very exciting and my second goal in Serie A was also very nice, which came against Juve when I was wearing the Milan shirt.”

Some personal curiosities: from the profession he would have liked to have if he hadn’t become a footballer, to the dedication after each of his goals.
“If I hadn’t been a footballer I would have wanted to be a policeman. It has always been a job that has intrigued me, from the outside. Clearly, however, my focus has always been on football because my big dream was to become a professional footballer and I succeeded. When I score, I always exult by forming a T with both hands and the reason is very simple. My wife’s name is Thessa and it’s always for her after every goal. Then we also had a dog named Teddy and now a son named Theo. Let’s say that the T has always been important to me, it has always had an important value in my life”.

Who, on the other hand, were your points of reference in black and white when you were a child?
“I think Del Piero, Nedved and Buffon are the emblem of Juventus. Then I had the good fortune to play with Chiellini and still now with Bonucci, so I can consider myself really very lucky”.

Did you know that Cuadrado, Kean and Pogba are the three loudest players in our locker room?
“Cuadrado is also the most annoying (Manuel laughs ed). Having Di Maria as a teammate is something extraordinary, but not only for what he can give you in training and in matches. He is a superior quality player and this aspect is beyond discussion, but I also really admire his human qualities. We met well in the United States, on tour, last summer and I discovered a wonderful person”.