Mohamed Salah: Off to Italy…
Salah moved to Italy in February 2015, initially on loan to Fiorentina before he joined AS Roma, where he spent two highly successful seasons and accelerated his development…
I had a good four months at Fiorentina and it was a good time for me and us as a team; I did well and we performed well in the Europa League and Serie A. Before I went there, it was very clear in my mind: I deserve to play. I had belief in my ability and I was going to Fiorentina to show everyone my football and what I could do.
Then I had a great two years in Rome and I was very, very happy there. Roma is not an easy place to play, it’s not easy at home – there is a lot of pressure there and it’s different. I cannot explain it, but inside you feel it is different to any other club. Everything is amazing there, though – the club is good, the fans are unbelievable and I had a great relationship with them because they always showed me love and respect.
Luciano Spalletti helped me a lot. A lot. He is very, very smart. Always after training, I would speak to him, ‘Boss, I want to improve that’ or, ‘I want to do this’ and he would never say no. Never. He would always say, ‘OK’ and even if he could see you were tired, he would always be telling you what he wants you to do, what he wants you to improve, ‘do this or do that, that’s better’. He helped me even as a person in improving my character. Defensively he helped me too, 100 per cent. He showed me the way to defend with the team and I saw myself improving in that aspect a lot.
I think I changed the perception of me during my time with Fiorentina and then Roma.
<< Back: London calling... | Next: On to Anfield... >>
Check out our range of Mohamed Salah merchandise. Order now for Christmas delivery>>