This morning, goalkeeper Matteo Grandi spoke at the press conferenze in VFC headquarter Ca’ Venezia:

"It is a very competitive championship, the standings are very short and we will play it to the end. There will be eight finals to face in the best possible way, only those who are more lucid and determined to reach the goal will make it. There are very well-equipped teams, we are a young, proactive, enthusiastic team with all the cards to compete. In my role, although I am 31 years old, you must always have the humility to learn, Joronen and Bertinato have many qualities and characteristics different from mine, for me they are two important reference points because they have had two formations in the role of goalkeeper different from mine. On and off the field you always have to improve and grow both personally and within a group.

The coach is exactly how you see him from the outside, he demands a lot from everyone, he demands that training be done to the maximum in order to then go strong in the game as well. He is good at group management, gets everyone involved and has no problem deploying one player over another if needed. Everything he does he does to bring out the best in you, when he tells me something he does it for my own good and personal growth. In a group there are many leaders, in my role that is not primary within the field, I try to be an important person for the locker room. On the field we are very united and that is the most important thing, besides being beautiful to watch.

The desire to get to the finish line and lucidity will make the difference, the team has grown so much it has always reacted even to the less positive moments by performing very well. This break falls like a glove, to recharge mentally and physically and face the last games in the best way. Venice is an important square that wants to aim high, with a project behind it that stimulated me to come here. I knew the environment where I was going to be, I knew the working method of the Coach, I am considered equal to my colleagues and all this played an important role in my choice.“