Marash Kumbulla gave his first interview as a Sassuolo player during his official presentation by the Neroverdi on Thursday afternoon, insisting that he wanted to join Alessio Dionisi’s side as soon as he heard of their interest.
Kumbulla moved from Daniele De Rossi’s Roma to Sassuolo near the January transfer deadline on February 1.
He had previously made 68 appearances and scored four goals for the Giallorossi across all competitions after joining from Hellas Verona in the summer of 2020. He was also part of the squad that won the inaugural edition of the UEFA Conference League under Jose Mourinho in 2022.
Kumbulla, who also celebrates his 24th birthday on February 8, told Sassuolo’s club reporters that he was delighted to make the switch as soon as he became aware it was a possibility.
“It all happened very quickly, I think the day before the medicals was the first time that Sassuolo had come up.
“In short, I had no hesitations. I immediately told my agents that I wanted to come, and so, here we are. I had been following from afar before I left (Roma), and I’m really happy now that I’ve come here.”
Speaking of his new teammates, Kumbulla said: “I immediately saw a group of guys who are willing and full of desire to play and get results. A strong coach and a very, very serious environment.
Sassuolo currently find themselves in 15th place in Serie A with 19 points after 23 matches. They occupy the same position in the table as they had done at the same stage of the 2022-23 season, but are currently five points worse off compared to last year.
“We know it’s not an ideal situation, but we know that we can improve with a lot of hard work. To our fans, I say quantity is not always important, but quality is. It doesn’t matter if there are 50 or 50,000 fans, their support has always been there and will always give us a hand.”
“Forza Sassuolo.”
The Neroverdi will play their next Serie A match at home against Torino, which could spell trouble for coach Dionisi if the team record a fourth successive defeat. Kick off is set for 19.45 on Saturday.
«È stato tutto molto veloce ma quando ho sentito del Sassuolo non ho avuto esitazioni, ho detto “Voglio andarci”!»🎙️
Marash Kumbulla si presenta 👋
L’intervista integrale è online su https://t.co/9578fgeWge🎥#ForzaSasol 🖤💚 pic.twitter.com/PJZ3awZ9PV
— U.S. Sassuolo (@SassuoloUS) February 8, 2024