Lazio, Rovella: Against Inter to emotionally recuperate

Lazio midfielder Nicolò Rovella has given a press conference at the Centro Sportivo di Formello ahead of the crucial match against Inter Milan tomorrow. He shared his thoughts on the upcoming game, European aspirations, playing against Inter, and his career growth.

Rovella emphasised the significance of the match, saying, “We need to be extremely cautious, it’s an important game for us. It serves as an emotional rebound for us, it will be a great match.”

Addressing his European ambitions, the Lazio player indicated his hope for a national call-up. He commented, “The national team is everyone’s dream, especially here in Italy. I hope for a call-up, I know I have to better but why not”.

Rovella, who played his first Serie A match against Inter, has a special attachment to the club with his family being staunch supporters. He expressed, “Qualifying to the round of 16 is a significant and not a given accomplishment, same as qualifying to the quarterfinals of the Cup. In the league, we are behind but we are there. My family are all Inter fans. I hope they cheer for me. The match against Inter tastes different for me, I started at the academy associated.”

Discussing the role of ‘regista’, a deep-lying playmaker, he praised Inter player Calhanoglu’s skills. He said, “Calhanoglu certainly has incredible qualities. Inter has always had great playmakers, I have also observed Brozovic for his movements. The Turkish player had a very play maker style of game. It’s no surprise to me. He had already shown this. It will be nice to play against him.”

On his personal growth as a player, Rovella shared credits with the coach saying, “I believe I have improved in the defensive phase, as my coach asked me to. Certainly, I need to do more in terms of possession and move forward with my range.”

While speculating on the Scudetto race, he said, “These are two strong teams, for me, Inter has something more than Juventus. I hope to pull a surprise on Inter tomorrow.”

When asked about his goal-drought, Rovella admitted, “Yes, I miss scoring. But the playmaker is far from the goal and it’s hard. I still need to improve, even with the assists. We can work more on this, I think about it, even apart from the coach. The playmaker’s role is more withdrawn, even the others in Serie A are not scoring much.”