Last European Championship MVP and Italian goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma insists that the entire Italian team is full of “confidence and drive” after navigating a thorny group stage, and “has the ability to go all the way”.
Italy’s round of 16 clash against Switzerland will take place at the Olympiastadion in Berlin, the venue where Italy won the 2006 World Cup final, a stadium which naturally holds extremely profound and fond memories for the Italians. Donnarumma revealed that the team manager, Gianluigi Buffon, and his experience in winning the World Cup has been a huge help for the team.
Speaking to Sky Sport Italia, Donnarumma said: “Buffon spoke to us about [winning the World Cup] and you could see the emotion in his eyes. The match against Switzerland will be a huge challenge, we have to stay positive and go into the game with full force.”
In the group stage match against Croatia, Mateo Kovačić’s last-minute winning goal sparked joyous celebrations for Italy, does this signify that the Italian team has broken through a mental barrier and entered a new realm? Donnarumma responded: “We are ready, we need to improve on some things in the knockout stages that we could have done better in the group stages, we are more aware of our abilities, everyone is ready.”
“We went through a very difficult group, at that time everyone thought we were finished, but we gave it our all and we made it through, that strengthened our confidence. Once we reach the round of 16, I believe that we can go all the way. The adrenaline will be pumping, we know that millions of Italians are behind us, that gives us an extra push to move forward.”
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