Carlo NICOLINI: "De Zerbi-Shakhtar: I will explain how the club managed to convince the top coach"
In the long interview with Transfermarket Web, the assistant to the sporting director Darijo Srna, Carlo Nicolini, answers our questions about how Shakhtar managed to convince their new manager Roberto De Zerbi:
Can you explain to us why De Zerbi chose Shakthar?
"Roberto chose Shakhtar for the project and our game philosophy, and not for a financial reason. What came out in the newspapers is not true, he chose us for our plan first and foremost. This is the first thing I want to clarify. Right from the start, the two sides had the same idea and the same vision, therefore it was not hard to find an agreement. As he said, our goal will be to win through a beautiful game. In terms of the media we did a huge thing, because one of the up and coming names in Europe that was on every sporting director list thanks to his innovative brand of football chose to come here."
When did the idea of trying to convince him to accept Shakhtar come about?
"Honestly it is difficult to give a precise time, he and I have been in touch for a long time and we have always confronted each other about our clubs. He is a great connoisseur of football, he has always asked me about Shakhtar. The idea originated in December, when I had the absolute certainty that Roberto wanted to try a new experience in a top club. In spite of what some naive people say in Italy, Shakthar is a top club. We always moved with respect of all parties involved, we decided to wait until he finished league play with Sassuolo. Our intent was never to obstruct or force the situation with the Italian club."
Background of the background: De Zerbi was already asking for information on Shakhtar?
"Yes, absolutely. Roberto’s interest in Shakhtar is not recent, he’s been asking me about the league, the club and the players for a while. I have known him for over thirty years, I was his first coach and I have always followed his career. When his name was mentioned, the top brass agreed. Srna, having played in Italy, knew him, so he was sure about him. After the first few contacts, he told us he was open to coming to us . The negotiation went through in an exemplary manner."
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