clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Daniele Rugani continues to make us swoon with how he describes playing for Juventus

Marco Luzzani/Getty Images

The beautiful thing about how Juventus handled introducing each one of their summer signings is that we got to meet each of them one at a time. Obviously the big-name players were first, but it also gave us the chance to hear what the other new arrivals had to say about the club they just signed for.

One of the best impressions made back in the summer was that of Daniele Rugani, who essentially wore an ear-to-ear grin from the second he stepped up to the microphone until he held up his new No. 24 jersey.

He wowed us with his maturity and level-headedness back then. And, in an interview with Sky Italia on Thursday, he continued to make our hearts go pitter-patter with his words. This kid, wise beyond his years, I tell ya.

"I'm enjoying every moment of this run in the side. It's a source of great satisfaction to be selected by the boss and I look to repay his faith in me by giving my very best on the pitch.

"At a club like Juventus, full of stars who are regularly rewriting football history, it's necessary to make a positive impact from the start. I feel like I've done that now and, with the help of my team-mates, I'm contributing more and more to this side."

You know what that second paragraph tells me? That Rugani is starting to truly believe he belongs. Not that he didn't think that before — he certainly seems to have a quiet confidence about him as evident by the way he plays — but to see him fully admit it (or whatever words you want to chose to describe it) is another thing entirely.

A lot of that has to do with the job Allegri has done managing Rugani — something that some of us didn't really agree on as the first half of the season went along with the young defender barely seeing the field at all.

"He talks a lot to me. Earlier in the season he told me to stay patient and calm. I've appreciated how he's always been very close to me."

One of the other big things that has helped Rugani adapt to life at Juventus has been the three defenders that have started ahead of him most of the season. We knew coming in that no matter how much playing time Rugani would end up getting that learning from Andrea Barzagli, Leonardo Bonucci and Giorgio Chiellini would be a huge thing for him. Just by simply knowing a little about Rugani's character, he was bound to welcome the wealth of knowledge that the BBC three-man backline could offer.

And what do you know? That's exactly what has happened.

"They're three unbelievable defenders, who have the perfect mix of attributes. You've the phenomenal concentration levels of Barzagli, the physicality and grit of Chiellini and in Bonucci you've a strong character and great technical ability to build up the play from the back."

All in all, Daniele Rugani is just as good of a person as he is a footballer. And he can stay around for as long as he wants. It has been decided and there's nothing that the rest of Serie A can do about it.