Dzeko: ‘Inter not decisive’
By Football Italia staff
Roma striker Edin Dzeko insists tomorrow’s clash with Inter “is not decisive” for the Scudetto race.
The Giallorossi are leading Serie A, with Roberto Mancini’s Nerazzurri two points behind, and the two face off at San Siro tomorrow.
“Am I surprised to be top? I knew I was joining a great team, but there’s a long way to go,” Dzeko told Gazzetta dello Sport.
“With that in mind, the game against Inter is not decisive yet, even if it’s an important game. Whoever wins can take confidence, so we can’t think of losing.
“There are no favourites this year, we’re there as are Inter, Napoli, Fiorentina and also Juventus. They remain a great team, and they’ll recover.
“Napoli are playing very well, with a champion like Higuain up-front. Unless he gets injured, he’s the most dangerous. He and [Miralem] Pjanic are the most decisive players in Serie A at the moment.
“There are so many top-level strikers, but Higuain is the best. Also [Mauro] Icardi and [Nikola] Kalinic are very strong, as is Eder.
“One thing is certain: it’s harder to score in Italy. Scoring 30 goals elsewhere is not the same thing.”
Dzeko is perhaps testament to the difficulty of scoring in Serie A, with just one League goal to his name so far.
“I’m not happy, as goals are important for me, but I don’t feel oppressed. The team is more important. I think anyone would prefer to see the team win and Dzeko stay on one goal.
“That said, the goals will come, and in any case I’ve set-up goals. I’ve always scored, and I’m sure I’ll score here, but I’m not putting pressure on myself.
“I’d be willing to continue my dry-streak until the end of the season to win the title here, it doesn’t happen very often and it would be even more important than going to the Euros with Bosnia, with whom I’ve already gone to the World Cup.”
The striker grew up during a civil war in his homeland, and shared some memories from his childhood in Bosnia.
“Like a lot of children, I had a stolen childhood,” Dzeko recalled.
“It was the worst period of my life. We were living in a quadrant of 15 by 37 metres in Sarajevo. Sometimes we woke up with almost nothing for breakfast.
“My father was on the frontline every day, when we heard the sirens I was worried he’d die. We went down into bomb shelters, never knowing how long we’d have to stay there.
“Certain experiences make you stronger, and make you appreciate life in the right way. When you’re afraid for your life, and that of your family, problems in football are nothing.
“I didn’t score? Never mind, I’ll score in the next game. Other things are what’s important.
“I had a difficult childhood, but then I got great things.”
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