“I’m happy to have scored, but we’re angry about the result.” Martin Payero he is not fully satisfied with the draw in Bologna. An important point, which moves the standings and morale in the home of the surprise championship, but insufficient to make the guest smile Udinese Tonight. “I think the team is doing well, we need to be more concentrated in the various game situations – continues the midfielder, underlining the injection of self-esteem by coach Fabio Cannavaro – The coach has given us an important boost of confidence, he spoke with us and he told us he sees quality. We must believe in our abilities and that we will be saved.” The 2006 world champion mentioned in the conference a fearful collective, a concept on which the Argentine focuses: “I don’t think it’s fear at all, but rather a bit of mistrust for the situation we find ourselves in. This change on the bench can be an asset to help us find the solution.”
From its beginnings, Payero feels like he has “grown up in everything. When I arrived at Boca Juniors I was very young, it was a very big change for me. Today I feel more mature, experienced.” During the matches with the Xeneizes “I told myself that I was in that situation, with that club, and to give everything. Being there allowed me to become who I am.” The arrival at the Juventus court is yet another of an Argentinian in Udine: “By signing for Udinese I didn’t just look at my compatriots who have done well here, but I informed myself about the entire history of the club.” A player who has left a mark and continues to do so is Roberto Pereyra, “a friend and our leader. I really like playing with him, his career is excellent. He demonstrates his charisma both on and off the pitch.”
The 25-year-old feels good, indeed, “every day better than the previous one”. The goal is to grow more and more, even if “we are aware of the situation in which we find ourselves. We have to play as we know how and be more focused. It depends only on us.” “I believe in it and the group thinks like me – she remarks – there is positivity. The fans are always with us, yesterday they were incredible throughout the match. They are heard every time. We must be united, positive. We can save ourselves if we are together, we cannot do it alone.” For this reason, he says, “it all comes from the head. In a situation like this you want to do more but maybe that doesn’t benefit the team. Since I arrived here my way of playing has changed, I’m different compared to two years ago. However, I always feel important because I know what I can give to my teammates and I want to offer them the best of me.”
The best means a lot of determination and a lot of running to press the opponents. “Cannavaro asks me to be more aggressive without the ball, while with the ball he wants to get to the goal quickly to score. He is a football legend, a Ballon d’Or winner. I saw him play on video, he was too strong”. Alongside coach Giampiero Pinzi, an Udinese star with whom Payero hasn’t spoken much yet, after all “only a week has passed since his arrival. He is always with us, he is careful not to give too much information which would not do us any good. Better few but good. Now I feel like a more balanced player when not in possession, but I like running towards the opponent’s goal.” The midfielder admits that he feels good in the city: “My partner and I like Udine a lot. It’s small, in a week you’ve seen everything and everyone – he concludes smiling – I feel the affection of our supporters, but my mentality always leads me to want to give more, I’m not satisfied. I want to give everything for my teammates, for the club, for the family. I think I can reciprocate the love that the fans give me.”