AC Milan Defender Fikayo Tomori has been praised for being fluent in Italian in a brilliant post-match interview, 15 months after joining the A series european champions giants chelsea.
The 24-year-old centre-back, who has made two appearances for England, has been in fine form for Stefano Pioli’s side this season after completing a £24m move following a successful season-long loan at the San Siro.
In fact, Milan have only conceded eight goals in Serie A in 2022, and their performances have been a key reason behind their conquest of the title as they sit top of the league, two points ahead of their rivals. for the title, Inter Milan.
Tomori has made a total of 38 appearances for club and country this season and on Sunday night, he scored another clean sheet as Milan beat Fiorentina 1-0 thanks to a late goal from Rafael Leao.
They were three crucial points in the Serie A race.
🏴 SofaScore
🔘 64 taps
🔘 46 passes
🔘 84% passing accuracy
🔘 3/4 Long Balls
🔘 Ground duels 1/1
🔘 1/2 Aerial Duels
🔘 2 interceptions
🔘 2 blocked shots
🔘 1 Clearance
🔘 1 ticket💪. #SempreMilan #MilanFiorentina pic.twitter.com/Tj2bNcT0hM
– Mozo Football (@MozoFootball) May 1, 2022
After the final whistle, Tomori, composed, calm and collected, conducted an interview with DAZN in fluent Italian as Milan held a two-point lead in the title race.
“We are happy and I am happy,” he said. “I am tired (laughs) but we are happy and we have to continue. There are three games left and we have to win.”
It was a post-match interview that was praised by many. Former England international Shaun Wright-Phillips took to social media to applaud Tomori’s actions.
“Great respect @fikayotomoriHe tweeted. “Not only has he been outstanding on the field this season in a new country, but he has taken the time to learn the respected language and culture.”
great respect @fikayotomori_. Not only has he been outstanding on the pitch this season in a new country, but he has taken time to learn the language and respected culture 👏🏾 pic.twitter.com/alpbxwmIq2
—Shaun Wright-Phillips (@swp29) May 2, 2022
Many fans reacted to Tomori’s interview on Sunday night.
One said: “Bravo for learning the language so well in such a short time and having the bottle to do interviews in Italian. I think that’s quite rare for English players abroad. Also bravo for succeeding in Serie A.”
Another wrote: “Really impressive how quickly he has picked up the language. Good player who doesn’t get the recognition he deserves.”
A third commented: “I really love Fikayo Tomori. The personality it takes to show up and speak Italian every week after a match says a lot about him. It’s easy to feel vulnerable, too exposed, in a situation like this. He’s brilliant.”
Thank you 🙏🏾🙏🏾
— Fikayo Tomori (@fikayotomori_) May 2, 2022
Tomori praised the atmosphere inside the San Siro during his interview. “When the stadium is full there is more excitement, they push us,” he said. “We can play with more energy because the fans charge us a lot.
“We defend with the whole team, it’s a pride not to concede so many goals: it helps us win and we can continue like this.
“We hope to continue like this (laughs). But the only important thing is the three points”.
Thoughts on Tomori’s post-match interview? Does he deserve more chances in the England setup?
Let us know in the comments.