After A. Bastoni scored in Italy's away match against France, which ended in a 1:1 draw in the third matchday of the UEFA Nations League group stage, he gave an interview to Italian state television.

On the Match

It was an extremely difficult match, and we knew that perfectly well; this wasn't anything new, of course. But right now I'm genuinely very happy and satisfied, and incredibly proud of the team's excellent performance tonight. We fought hard on the pitch, gritted our teeth, and withstood enormous pressure. In a way, we may have even disrupted France's original plans for the evening, no? This match was set up to be a big celebration for them, but we knew we didn't come here just to go through the motions or take it easy. That's exactly how it was, and I'm incredibly proud of every member of our team.

This is your second consecutive match where you've scored. What's going through your mind right now? Did you set any specific goals for yourself?

Scoring goals is certainly very pleasant, but after scoring, my first thought was that I absolutely must not make a mistake and concede another goal. I can't allow the opponent to score again, or my goal becomes meaningless. So, to repeat, I'm very satisfied with my goal because it helped the team achieve an extremely important result. This result gives us strong confidence and momentum, allowing us to move forward with unwavering determination.

As for you personally, given your previous circumstances, did you expect this season with the national team to start off with such a breakthrough?

Scoring two goals in a row, of course, was unexpected. However, as I've said many times, I never lost faith in myself. I would never let one or two negative events or difficult spells destroy my career—my career is built on more than 300 matches at the highest level.

So I want to express my gratitude once more to my family, my wife, and my daughter. I always maintained firm confidence in myself. I've successfully overcome these difficult periods and setbacks, and I believe that the ability to bounce back and always get back on your feet is in itself an outstanding quality and virtue.

One last question: by the end of the match, did you really believe your team could even win this away game?

We believed not just at the end; we believed we could win from the first minute. In the first half, even though the opponent perhaps had more possession and controlled the game better, the clearest and most dangerous chances in the entire match were actually created by us.

So, to repeat, we're very happy and satisfied now. But this absolutely cannot be our final destination—absolutely not! On the contrary, this should give us enormous confidence and momentum. Because if we can deliver such an excellent overall performance against France, it means we're capable of playing at the same level against any team in the world.

So we must stay humble, work hard with our heads down, and ignore all the excessive praise and flattery that will come our way in the coming days, because we have an extremely important match right after this, and we all know its significance. So let me summarize once more: move forward with unwavering determination, work hard, and fight with all your strength. Thank you all very much.

Переведено ИИ.

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