Christian Kouame, Fiorentina striker and captain in the 0-0 derby draw against Empoli, he spoke in the press conference at the end of the match: “We missed playing together, when the ball arrives we have to look for each other. We missed this”.
Did you expect this start to the season?
“We have changed a lot. The coach and the staff, the game system, many players… We expected a bit of difficulty but we also have to be good at involving everyone quickly and trying to win the games.”
What does the captain’s armband mean? Is your renewal done?
“I went out to see the pitch, then the team manager called me and when the coach told me that I would be captain and if I felt up to it, I replied that I couldn’t back out. I’m one of those who played more in Fiorentina and I’m not afraid of being captain. I expected it and it was exciting. We’ll talk about the renewal but there are no problems, I’m from Florence now.”
What do you mean you need to find each other more?
“We need to help the new ones who have arrived. I, Ikone and Sottil have to make them understand that they can count on us, that we’ve been here for a long time. We have to help them feel good when they’re on the pitch, that they have faith in us. In this game we need to help each other. Today I had to put Kean and Colpani in good condition, when we play together the results come. Just look at the last one, when Gud took the two penalties.”
Does Fiorentina have the strongest attackers since you’ve been here?
“Fiorentina is a strong and historic team. I will always say it: we are strong and we must make the new players understand that we really are. If I score a goal today, maybe another one will do it tomorrow but it is Fiorentina who wins. We must put more of this I look forward.”