Captain Gjimshiti: We want first place in the group and the Euros for a third time!

Albania captain Berat Gjimshiti joined coach Rolando Maran at the press conference ahead of the Nations League campaign. He spoke about the team spirit and the Albanian national team’s objective in the Nations League. The defender also commented on his decision to move to Saudi Arabia. Among other things, Gjimshiti emphasized:

“I think I found the team in very good shape. We had a bit more time. We needed these days to learn and practice the coach’s ideas. There’s a very positive spirit in the national team. Etrit is back — a key, experienced player. I know him, I played with him in Italy; he’ll give the young players a hand.

Why Saudi Arabia? Maybe I opened the road for Asllani… It was my decision, together with Atalanta. Maybe from the outside it doesn’t look like a strong league, because not all TV channels show it, but it’s a very difficult league. There are many quality players who came from Europe in the last 3-4 years. It’s not as simple as it looks. Especially for defenders, because every team has a big-name striker. For me it’s a big challenge as a defender.

The promise is that we’ll give our maximum, we’ll all be together, in victory and in defeat. We want first place, to have the chance to go to the Euros for a third time. That’s the goal and that’s the right path.

The lineup? In these years I’ve had several coaches and different tactics. I talked a lot with coach Maran about tactics and other things. I think he’ll pick what’s best for the team, to fit all the players and open the road to success. Whether we play with three or four [at the back], I don’t think it changes much — the coach decides in the end.

We have ambitions for first place. I’ve always aimed for the maximum. We weren’t lucky with Poland for the World Cup; it would have been a great achievement. We’ll look to repeat the Euros again. Why not for a third time. Mentality matters a lot when you step onto the pitch, because everything starts in the head. In the summer the coach had his ideas, but we didn’t have much time.”