Stevan Jovetic speaks of his 'insane joy' at scoring for Inter, how he chose to #10 shirt, and where he plays best.
The Montenegrin is the man of the moment in the Nerazzurri side of Milan after scoring a last-minute winner against Atalanta in the season opener.
“I experienced a similar emotion in Florence,” he said, in an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport.
“I scored a goal against Sporting Lisbon that took us from the Champions League play-offs to the groups stage.
Stevan Jovetic speaks of his 'insane joy' at scoring for Inter, how he chose to #10 shirt, and where he plays best.
The Montenegrin is the man of the moment in the Nerazzurri side of Milan after scoring a last-minute winner against Atalanta in the season opener.
“I experienced a similar emotion in Florence,” he said, in an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport.
“I scored a goal against Sporting Lisbon that took us from the Champions League play-offs to the groups stage.
“It's an insane joy to score like that, one minute from the end, on my debut and in our stadium.
“The thing that really stuck with me was the way that everyone went crazy, myself included, but in particular the way all of the supporters seemed to come over to hug me.
“I almost saw them on top of me.”
Jovetic was then asked about the reasons behind his choice of the number 10 shirt.
“Firstly let me say that a friend departed, Mateo [Kovacic].
“On the day he left for Real Madrid I had this idea to try something that I'd normally never have the courage to ask.
“My favourite shirt had always been number 8, that of [Predrag] Mjiatovic and [Dejan] Savicevic when I was a child.
“Or else the 35, which I had at Partizan and which I initially picked up here because the other one was taken.
“Well, on that day I decide to go for it. I asked team manager Andrea Romeo, club manager [Dejan] Stankovic and Javier Zanetti if it's possible to change shirts.
“The number 10 is free, can I have that? They said yes. It was a dream come true.
“I've matured considerably in these years, I've strengthened my mentality, I learnt a lot from the champions I played with at [Manchester] City.
“I also learned from my mistakes, and from the things I did well.
“In terms of personality I'm now more chilled in front of the goal. When you develop, your levels of confidence grow.
“Upfront I can and I'm willing to do everything and play in any role.
“My ideal position, though, is in a two-striker formation in which I'm playing with the goal in my sights and my teammate close to me.”
The 25-year-old was then asked about his relationship with Coach Roberto Mancini.
“It's true that he wanted me as early as 2007, my agent kept me up to date on that.
“Everything was going well, but I ended up staying in Florence another year. It's a city I've always loved, and I always will.
“Mancini called me in June, I was at the beach in Montenegro and maybe he was too.
“Then [sporting director Piero] Ausilio called me. They explained to me what they had in mind, their projects for Inter and for me.
“Once the phone calls were done it took me one second to decide: Inter was right for me.
“And at this moment I know I'm in the top team of my career, because there can be no doubt that this is one of the strongest and most important in Europe.”