Federico Bernardeschi believes the reaction of some Fiorentina fans to his Juventus move is “part of an unhealthy society”.
The Italian international completed a €40m move to the Bianconeri this week, sparking a furious reaction from a minority of Viola supporters.
“I think this is a bit of a delicate subject,” Bernardeschi cautioned at his official presentation.
Federico Bernardeschi believes the reaction of some Fiorentina fans to his Juventus move is “part of an unhealthy society”.
The Italian international completed a €40m move to the Bianconeri this week, sparking a furious reaction from a minority of Viola supporters.
“I think this is a bit of a delicate subject,” Bernardeschi cautioned at his official presentation.
“I think this is part of an unhealthy society we’re living with in today’s world, like fans wishing death or serious illness to people on social media.
“That’s a bad thing, and I’m not here to feed this unhealthy part of society. Indeed, I thank the fans who, despite everything, wished me good luck.
“These are the people to thank, then there are maybe those who said to me: ‘We won’t be supporting you anymore, but despite that we hope you grow as a professional’.
“That part of society is healthy and should be supported, I’m thankful for it and I appreciate it.
“However, I think the unhealthy part of society should be left alone. I have a strong character, so there’s no problem, the problem comes when these attacks come on fragile people, and I think that’s a societal problem in today’s world.”
Roberto Baggio made the same move in 1990, a player to whom Bernardeschi has been compared.
“Baggio is Baggio, and there’s no-one like Baggio. In my opinion comparisons are always wrong, because there are lives, men are different from each other.
“Baggio was perhaps the greatest Italian footballer of all time, he showed that, so I don’t think you should compare me to him.
“I’m flattered by it, but I think it’s a bit disrespectful to him.”
The negations with Fiorentina dragged on, but after his signature the likes of Gianluigi Buffon and Alessandro Del Piero praised the 23-year-old.
“Well it was long, but it was beautiful,” Bernardeschi shrugged.
“It was a nice and exciting negotiation. It wasn’t easy, but I thank Juve for the confidence they’ve shown in me.
“I thank my agent and those close to me. In the end we managed to get it over the line.
“The compliments I received? First of all I thank them, I really appreciated it. I think when legends like Del Piero and Buffon compliment you, it’s a nice thing for we youngsters.
“I want to thank them publicly for their words, for a youngster like me it was really emotional.
“I’ve always said that Gigi is an example for me [both come from Carrara], but then I think he’s an example for everyone around the world.
“His story speaks for itself, there’s no need to talk about it. When you have a leader like him, you feel more like following him.”