Francesco Acerbi says he now looks at life from a ‘different perspective’, following his first call-up to the Italy squad.
The Sassuolo centre-back, who has twice fought back from testicular cancer, came on for the last 10 minutes of the Azzurri's 1-0 victory over Albania last night to complete his turnaround in fortune.
“Yesterday I made my debut for the national team, and I hope there will be a sequel,” Acerbi explained to Radio Crc.
Francesco Acerbi says he now looks at life from a ‘different perspective’, following his first call-up to the Italy squad.
The Sassuolo centre-back, who has twice fought back from testicular cancer, came on for the last 10 minutes of the Azzurri's 1-0 victory over Albania last night to complete his turnaround in fortune.
“Yesterday I made my debut for the national team, and I hope there will be a sequel,” Acerbi explained to Radio Crc.
“I think I did well, and it always depends on us players. It's important to do well in the League, but the Coach makes the decisions.
“I now look at everything from a different perspective. I have objectives and try to improve day by day.
“I look into things deeply and try to figure out where I'm going wrong and what I must do in order to achieve my goals.
“Football is my passion and I give my best. In the past, I reasoned most things like a child and didn't fully realise what I had before, but now I have a different outlook. I'm more mature and aware.”
Acerbi then offered his best wishes to Lorenzo Insigne, who recently saw his season cut short by ligament damage.
The defender also expressed his confidence in Sassuolo's efforts to beat the drop this season.
“I wish Insigne the best of luck. After a long injury, when you're away from the pitch, you think a lot of things, but I'm sure that Lorenzo has a great desire to start over.
“When he heals fully, he'll be stronger than before.
“Sassuolo have some great players. Our only aim is survival and we don't look very far [beyond that]. We have a good group and we can achieve it.
“Paolo Cannavaro is a great player and a great guy, very humble and has a lot of experience. Every so often, he speaks in Neapolitan with Floro Flores, but it's very nice.
“If Napoli continue on this path, they'll be devastating, and they certainly have the quality and brilliance to fight for the title. They're a great team and anyone would want to play for them.”