Former Fiorentina midfielder Giacomo Bonaventura was interviewed today at Rocco B. Commisso Viola Park.

It’s nice to have you back here.

“I’m happy to be back here too. I came by to say hi to many friends and former team-mates. I’m very happy. I built great relationships and friendships during my time here, so it was nice to see them again.”

How are you? What are you doing now professionally and how was your experience in Saudi Arabia?

“I really enjoyed my experience in Saudi Arabia. Now I’m devoting some time to my family. I want to embark on a new challenge, but I’m not sure what just yet. I decided to take a break and think about it later on.”

What do you think about Fiorentina’s season?

“I’ve followed them throughout the season. If you get off to a bad start, it’s hard to recover. But at the end of the day, Fiorentina are a good team and the coach did a good job. The team did what they had to do during the second half of the season. I’m happy they did well in this second half and I hope they’ll finish the season well. I hope they’ll do great next season because Florence is a wonderful city with very passionate fans. Fiorentina fans deserve great results.”

What is the best and the worst memory you have at Fiorentina?

“I have many wonderful memories. Those four years were very fun. We played well and we always felt great support from our fans. We were very compact. We played quality football and there was a lot of excitement. Playing in Florence was a huge joy. We reached many finals. My only disappointment is that we never managed to win a trophy, but I had a lot of fun in those four years and I think our fans did too.”

Fiorentina are playing against Juventus in Turin in a few days.

“This match means a lot for everyone here in Florence. I’m sure that the team will put up a very good performance and I hope they’ll make their fans proud.”