Vincenzo Italiano, the coach of Bologna, has spoken highly of Federico Bernardeschi’s remarkable comeback at the club. He also expressed his belief that young winger Jonathan Rowe has the potential to become a top player, emphasizing that his team will continue to strive for a Conference League position leading up to Sunday’s match against Atalanta.
During his pre-match press conference at the Niccolò Galli training center, Italiano shared his candid thoughts on Bologna’s current situation as they approach their second-to-last game of the season with a slim chance of qualifying for European competition.
Regarding Bernardeschi, Italiano was particularly enthusiastic. “We can say it now because the season is almost over, we won the bet,” he stated. “We weren’t taking a gamble on a youngster nobody knew. There were doubts about him regaining his form after years away from European football. In the end, he blossomed, and the player we knew returned. He’s still a big kid because he still enjoys himself and gets angry when he doesn’t play. He still has fire inside.”
Rowe also received commendation, albeit with a clear challenge for improvement. “He can become a champion if only he understood that training requires the same intensity as a match,” Italiano remarked. “It’s not that he’s not training well, but he needs to make this growth step in terms of intensity to improve further.”
Italiano addressed the team’s inconsistency in home and away performances with honesty. “You cannot always have an explanation,” he admitted. “Perhaps too much fervor and euphoria has made us less rational in front of our own fans. Away from home, we’ve found incredible concreteness; we defend well and often score with our first shot on target. We didn’t do it on purpose, and I know some grumbling has arrived for this.”
The Bologna coach also confirmed that Skorupski will start in goal, provided he is fit, as he had promised the goalkeeper earlier in the week. On the Conference League race, he remained resolute. “They have nothing left to ask of the season. We will try until the end.”
Italiano also took a moment to reflect on the Coppa Italia final with visible emotion. “Seeing that match made me think that we were there and we rejoiced,” he said. “I am proud of having lifted that trophy and doing something incredible.”
