Sam Beukema gave a wonderful interview in which he dwelt on his relationship with the city of Bologna and especially with the fans at the Dall’Ara, with whom an incredible bond has been formed. The Dutchman then revealed a backstory about his arrival in Italy, which could have happened even earlier.
BOLOGNA. “Now the Dall’Ara is like my second home. When I arrived I immediately felt this feeling. It would not be a problem for me to play here until the end of my career. Let’s see, my focus is here because we have so many good challenges ahead of us.”
BEUKEMA ON CASTRO AND DALLINGA. “Castro is always charged up, he is never calm on the field even when he says he is calm. He has the right mentality, he can become a great player. Dallinga has had physical problems, but he is very strong. He just has to find continuity, he scores a lot in training, we have to have confidence in him.”
ARRIVAL AT BOLOGNA. “Bologna had already contacted me when I played for the Go Ahead Eagles, but I wanted to play at a top Dutch club first. Then, in my second season at AZ, they called again and for me it was clear: I had to come here. It was my dream to play in Italy, I used to go to Riccione as a kid but I had never been to Bologna. I immediately felt this city as warm, welcoming. The people are very nice. A friend of mine wrote to me recently saying he wants to come and watch a game, because he heard Bologna is beautiful.”
FROM THE ARA. “The stadium is unique, it’s magical! After the win against Dortmund it was one of the most beautiful moments of my career. When I arrived the atmosphere had not reached this level, however, in the last two years since I’ve been here, almost every home game is beautiful. I don’t know what it was like before, but now there is something special. And not only in the stadium, you can feel it in the city as well. We hope to continue like this.”
BEUKEMA ON CHAMPIONS. “I didn’t expect to play Champions with Bologna, but it was a great experience for everyone. Champions is the highest level and we showed that we can be there. Playing against top clubs is special and it’s a shame we lost a few points at the beginning. We were competitive, we hope to play it again.”
ITALIANO. “The coach is always charged, he never lets us lower our intensity, every day he asks for the maximum. Defensively we defend higher, it’s a different game. At the beginning it was strange, but now we know what to do. The coach talks a lot with us, not only about tactics but also about private life. In the human relationship he is good.”
Source: It’s TV Network 7
