Ricardo Rodriguez replies to Leonardo Bonucci
Ricardo Rodriguez replies to Leonardo Bonucci
After the one reserved for Leonardo Bonucci, Repubblica decided to give a space among its columns to Ricardo Rodriguez as well, since the two will face each other tomorrow at 6 p.m. in the derby della Mole.
“Life always manages to surprise you. When I think about the desire to do homework and the pleasure of going to school, which I never had, it almost makes one smile that a major newspaper asks me specifically to write an article. This happens because I am now the captain of the Taurus. I did not know this, I only found out recently that the first captain in the history of the Toro was a Swiss footballer like me, Friedrich Bollinger. Also a defender, by the way. As I became more informed, I read that he played with a very tight jersey, which he then tied on the side with a cable tie. I use the band to keep my long hair tied up, something in common we have,” the Swiss wrote.
“In this article I have to tell the emotions of the derby, so here I am, pen in hand and lots of papers to write. In 2022 I may be the only journalist in the world who writes his article with a ballpoint pen. However, I also think that if they had asked Bollinger, in 1906, he would have done that too. To talk about the Turin derby, I think it is fair to do so by thinking back to the challenges between teams from the same city that I played in my career. The Zurich derby, the Milan derby, and this one with Juve. In Switzerland, with Zurich, I faced Grasshopper. I know that of Switzerland and the Swiss you think mostly of order, tranquility, things like that. The derby is the exception: for the derby there is always a mess, soccer changes habits there too. In the richer neighborhoods, in the more exclusive places around the lake, the cheering was for Grasshopper. In the city and suburbs, the majority was for Zurich.”
“With Milan I can’t make that comparison, Milan and Inter have two important histories and also a certain balance of results: the derby is very heartfelt in the week before the match, then it leaves room for more. As I experience it here in Turin, however, the derby is every day. And exactly as in Zurich, here I have the feeling that Turin is granata, much more granata than bianconera. When I tell this in Switzerland to my relatives, to my friends, I surprise them with this. Just like when I tell them that in every place in Italy where I have been, even in the South, even in the farthest places from here, to welcome us I have always found Toro fans. In a few weeks I will play my third World Cup with Switzerland: for a footballer it is a great achievement, a great satisfaction. So is being the captain of Toro. Today also gave me the chance to be a journalist for a day: I hope I did not bore you,” concluded the granata footballer.
