- 2 years ago
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00:00 Do you know where I put Muna Squad in terms of ranking?
00:04 Which is your favourite statistic?
00:06 Definitely this one. Goals conceded per 90. Obviously I'm not playing the ball up here
00:10 apart from that one pass but your 1v1 and it's you against a striker. I really like
00:15 those kind of drills. It's hard for me to kind of get round him in front of him. Obviously
00:19 this is my first goal for Milan so that was a really proud moment. In this particular
00:23 jump I managed to get the best of him. I know that being more superhuman than him, I'm not
00:29 sure about that but I'll take this record over him. I'll just see it one more time.
00:33 Fikayo, we think the best way to describe you is as a total defender. Do you see yourself
00:48 as a modern, complete, all-round defender as well?
00:51 Yeah, I'd say so. I think I try to model my game on different people in the game. People
00:58 who are better at certain things than I am or have different characteristics than I do.
01:03 So I try my best to add little bits to my games where I can learn off what I watch,
01:12 improve myself as much as possible. I guess like you say, become that total defender.
01:16 It's hard in the modern game because there's so many aspects to defending and so many things
01:20 that change in a second in the game. So I just try and improve as much as possible in
01:26 every game to be the best I can be.
01:29 Did you start when you were a youngster in central defence? And also, what characteristics
01:33 have you always had?
01:35 I think like most players, when you start off, everyone's normally an attacker, likes
01:40 to score goals, etc. So that was kind of where I started. Probably when I got to being about
01:47 13, 14, that's when I started to play centre back a bit more. By 16, 17, I was pretty much
01:56 exclusively playing centre back. And then I just kind of grew into that position. As
02:03 I said before, there were some attributes that I had that kind of allowed me to shine
02:07 in centre back probably more than I would have in another position up front, for example.
02:13 Like I said before, my speed and I think as I get more experience in reading the game,
02:18 the mentality of trying to help the team. This is, for example, this is something that
02:23 I've had since I was young, being able to run pretty quickly and recover. So yeah, ever
02:28 since I was young, I've kind of had that mentality of I want to kind of be the one to save the
02:32 day or save the occasion or whatever it is. And being a defender, there's a lot of chances
02:36 where I have to do that. So yeah, that's just kind of how I started and how I feel like
02:42 I was kind of just made to play this position in football in the modern game.
02:48 Italy is obviously famous for the art of defending, but obviously you possess an instinct for
02:54 defending. How much do you rely on that instinct and how much do you use what you have learnt
02:59 here in Italy?
03:00 Yeah, I think coming here, I definitely realised the rise in detail in defending and how not
03:07 just how they want you to defend individually, but how you are in relation to where your
03:11 teammates are or where the team is or where the opposition are. And those are the kind
03:16 of things where in England, maybe I was defending more instinctually than now, where it's a
03:21 lot more thinking and a lot more thinking about where I am in relation to the team,
03:26 in relation to the ball, in relation to where we are on the pitch, where they are on the
03:30 pitch. So I think being in Italy has definitely allowed me to grow in that aspect. And it
03:37 kind of helps you to not rely on only instinct, but being able to think about a game or trying
03:43 to think ahead. But then there's obviously instances in the game where you have to do
03:47 stuff instinctually and the ball does drop or the ball lands somewhere and you just have
03:52 to react. And I think that's where those attributes and those things that I was born with and
03:57 that I've had forever come into play. But being in Italy, just my understanding of the
04:02 game has grown and I've just tried to take as much as possible from different defenders
04:08 and the manager and coaches as well.
04:09 How do you build up play from the back?
04:18 Analysing your stats, we notice that you build up play from the back. Do you consider yourself
04:24 as the team's first playmaker and how much do you work on that aspect?
04:28 Yeah, we do a lot of building up from the back. We try and play the ball from the back
04:34 a lot. Obviously, I'm not playing the ball up here apart from that one pass. But yeah,
04:39 it's just about trying to get the ball players on the ball, like Tajani, Isma, Yassine, Rapha
04:47 Christian, the attacking players, trying to get them on the ball as much as possible.
04:51 It's definitely something as a team that everyone else tries to do and we all try to move for
04:56 each other and make the game easier so we can build up and maintain position and get
04:59 control of the game a lot. So yeah, you can see I've played on the left side and make
05:04 a lot of passes from here, from this sort of area where we're building up and where
05:09 teams sometimes probably sit off against us. So yeah, it's just about trying to give the
05:16 team a solid foundation, a solid base where we can build from and being reliable with
05:20 the ball.
05:21 Since your debut, you are the player who has had 100 or more touches in the most matches.
05:27 Do you like that responsibility?
05:29 Yeah, I think it's just about being the base of the team, being in the centre where the
05:35 ball is a lot of the time, being reliable with the ball and being able to help the team
05:41 go forward and help build the team in terms of construction with the ball and progressing
05:45 the ball. It's just about being reliable with the ball, using it well, making right decisions.
05:51 And yeah, I think that helps us to progress the ball forward and to get, like I said,
05:57 the match winners at the front of the pitch to win us the game.
06:00 What influences your choice of pass? Is it moving the ball on quickly? Is it searching
06:05 for unexpected angles or is it something else?
06:09 There's a lot of stuff. There's a lot of things. It depends on the opposition, how they press
06:14 or how we want to build up. And then again, sometimes maybe the team turns up and they've
06:19 done something that maybe we haven't prepared for. Maybe they've just done something to
06:23 try and surprise us. There's so many different games, so many different strikers, so many
06:27 different opposition and defences that we have to play against, the Champions League
06:32 or the Europa League or the Serie A or Coppa Italia, where there's so many different scenarios
06:38 that are coming up. So yeah, I think it's just about being prepared for every situation
06:43 as much as you can, knowing that anything can happen and just being ready for that.
06:48 So making riskier passes is something that I want to try and improve on. So yeah, we'll
06:53 see how that goes, but it's something I'm working on and something that I want to take
06:57 forward for the rest of the season and going further into my career as well.
07:01 You were a pillar of the Scudetto winning team. Here are your numbers from that season.
07:07 Which is your favourite statistic?
07:11 Definitely this one. Goals conceded per 90. That year we were really, really good. Obviously
07:16 we won the league. I think for a team like us, having goals conceded per 90, less than
07:24 one. We have players like Ole, we had Rafa, we had Tonali, there was Messi, Aspire, Diaz,
07:32 Theo as well. So many players that could score goals for us. Rebic, Ibrahimovic. Having this
07:38 one here just allowed us to, I guess it allowed the players up front to know that it's going
07:43 to be hard for them to score against us. So we just have to make sure we score. I think
07:47 for them mentally that gives them a bit of a boost and for us, or me personally as a
07:52 defender and us as a collective, as a defence and as a team, it just gives us confidence
07:57 knowing that we are hard to beat. If we are like this on our day, if we're that tough
08:02 to beat on our day, then we can win games. So yeah, this is definitely the column that
08:07 I'm most happy about in these statistics for sure.
08:11 Well, defenders love clean sheets and you clearly love a clean sheet. You'll be proud
08:17 to know that since you have been at Milan, with you on the pitch, the team have kept
08:22 the most clean sheets.
08:23 Didn't know that. Yeah, that's… Yeah, these are all nice stats. I think, you know, there's…
08:36 you look at these stats now, obviously they're good stats, but then I start to think about
08:40 the games where maybe we conceded a stupid goal or maybe we switched off for a second
08:45 and those are the kind of things that are in my mind right now. But yeah, for sure,
08:49 these stats are great and thinking about it, you know, saying I'm the one when I'm on
08:53 the pitch, there's more clean sheets. Obviously as a defender, that's what you want and that's
08:58 just what I try and do. That's what I work for every day, try and help the team to stay
09:02 in the game. My job is to keep us in the game and save the game when need be. So yeah, I
09:07 think, you know, shots saved on, for example, I think that is something that I'm happy
09:12 about, you know, keeping Mike in the goal safe as much as possible. So yeah, obviously
09:19 always room to improve. But yeah, overall, really happy with these stats.
09:28 Now it's time to watch some of your highlights in red and black. We're going to start with
09:32 the match against Fiorentina in March 2021, one of your first away games in Serie A. Your
09:40 aggression really stood out. Is it fair to say that man marking is one of your specialities?
09:45 Yeah, I think it's grown a lot since I've actually been here. I've always been someone
09:50 who's been able to stay with a striker no matter if he was big or wiry or strong or
09:56 whatever. I think, yeah, that's definitely something that I've, again, grown since I've
10:01 been here, but always been an attribute of mine. I remember this game really well, actually.
10:05 This was my first six months. So yeah, it was a really good game. I felt really good,
10:09 I remember. And these kind of duels where you're 1v1 and it's you against a striker,
10:16 you know, I really like those kind of duels, because then it's just about staying concentrated
10:23 and showing off what you can do in those sort of situations. So yeah, this is a really good
10:28 game for me. For example, here, these kind of strikers where they try and move the ball
10:34 a lot and they try and get their body in the way or they try and trick you. It's just about
10:38 a mental battle and a physical battle as well. For example, here, he tried to hold the ball
10:43 and I just got through the front of him. So yeah, there's just different scenarios and
10:49 you always have to stay alert and try and win that battle. So yeah, those are the parts
10:55 of the game that I enjoy, for sure.
10:57 I think most people will say, especially on the football pitch, if you can play a game
11:00 where you can display your best attributes, it makes you look good, it makes you feel
11:03 good, you play your best. And I think these are the kind of games where I can show the
11:08 aggression or strength or the speed or whatever it is. When I get the opportunity to show
11:13 these parts of my game that I guess kind of got me to the level I am today, I think those
11:19 are the times where I have to be on it to show it.
11:24 Your build, your physicality, along with your speed makes you a master of last-ditch tackles.
11:30 Can you explain how you time tackles in the area so well, like these against Manchester
11:36 United and against Atalanta?
11:38 Yeah, I think it's just through experience really. I think this one, I tried to actually
11:43 nip the ball there and I didn't really quite get it away, so it was just about recovering.
11:47 But like I said, it's always been an attribute of mine where I can recover really quickly.
11:52 I try not to give the striker a moment's peace to get an easy shot or an easy pass
11:56 off, especially in the box. In regards to timing, it's just about watching the ball.
12:01 I'm trying not to look at the man, trying to just focus on the ball, trying to make
12:04 sure I'm by the side of him, I've got the right angle to tackle and not going through
12:09 the side of him or going through the back of him. Just trying to make sure I can see
12:13 him to the side of me so that I can get my arm in and then create space myself to actually
12:18 take the ball. In these sorts of scenarios, you can see where I'm giving myself space,
12:25 get my arm in there so I can hook the ball away. This is something I've been doing since
12:30 I first started playing defence, so I'm glad it's stayed with me.
12:36 Your speed is particularly useful in a team like ours, in which the full-backs attack
12:41 and occasionally leave gaps. Do you work on your understanding with the goalkeeper, full-backs
12:47 and other centre-backs in training?
12:49 Yeah, for sure. Something that we definitely work on, especially with the left flank that
12:54 we have with Rafa and Tao, who like to go and when they go they really fly. So having
13:03 the understanding that they are going to go, so then I have to be really ready to cover,
13:08 be ready to exploit spaces. Like here, Tao is inside and he's gone high and then I've
13:13 managed to come up. I can't remember what I made here, I probably should have passed
13:17 it to Rafa, but that's alright. But yeah, just understanding the role in which I play,
13:23 see Tao's gone there so I know I have to open up or that he's going to create space for
13:27 maybe Rafa to get the ball or midfielders to get the ball. If a midfielder is taken,
13:30 then I can take that space. So yeah, it's definitely something we work on.
13:34 Again, game to game, depending on who we're playing against, we adjust it sometimes. For
13:39 example here, I think this is Torino where they come man to man, so being able to, I'm
13:45 off the striker's shoulder there, he can't see me, so then I can go into that space and
13:48 Tao's left his space because his man's marking him. Rafa's pinned his man back. So yeah,
13:53 just these little movements that we work on for sure.
13:56 This season, after a corner against Juventus, you made a recovery run and hit a top speed
14:01 of 35.48 kilometres per hour. That eye-catching stat put you among the fastest in the squad.
14:09 How important is pace in modern football?
14:12 Do you know where I put me in the squad in terms of ranking?
14:15 I'm always pretty high, but yeah, I think, especially these corners where you just got
14:23 to sprint back. There's no kind of positional play or whatever. You just got to try and
14:27 get back and cover the space as much as possible. So yeah, that's just what I tried to do in
14:31 this situation, even though I didn't actually clear the ball. But you can see Moise Keane
14:37 again is a fast player, so just really getting back in as quick as possible was the goal.
14:42 You can see when you put your head down to run, that's when you know you're going. So
14:46 yeah, obviously nice to be one of the fastest in the squad, I think. This is the first time
14:50 I've actually seen the stat of how fast it was. So yeah. I want to see it one more time.
15:00 You like it, yeah?
15:01 Yeah, it's a good stat. It's good. I like it.
15:03 And you wanted to be the highest. We'll try and find out.
15:05 Yeah, yeah. If not me, then before the end of the season, I'm going to have to pull another
15:11 one and really, really, really go.
15:13 Break a record. All right. Usain Bolt style.
15:17 Goal scorers need a nose for goal, while defenders require a sixth sense for impending danger.
15:23 In the following interventions, did you have a gut feeling that your goal was under threat?
15:29 Yeah, yeah, for sure. I think it's when the ball goes over your head in that instance
15:34 where you don't know what's behind you, so you've just got to kind of recover. You don't
15:39 know where the ball is going to land, so you've just got to try and get back in and defend
15:44 the goal. So for example, that one, that was just about balls over my head. Got to get
15:50 back in. There, Gigi Odoonoruma, he came out, so the goal's empty. So we've just got to
15:57 try and block it. Yeah, Simon does the first one and then I've done the second one. And
16:02 you can see there, that's just both of us with the instinct. There, Mike's on the floor
16:06 and the ball's just in the air. Again, don't know what's behind me, so I've just got to
16:09 try and get the ball away from the goal as quick as possible, as effective as possible,
16:13 get a clean contact on it. And yeah, that was a Scudetto when we conceded less than
16:19 a goal a game. So I think this kind of attitude that we had there was definitely what took
16:25 us there. And then again here, I think the way I realised that he had a free shot and
16:30 he'd probably open up to go into the far corner. So just as quick as I kind of tried to, well,
16:37 I did get in the way of where I knew he was going to put it. So yeah, it's just about
16:40 instinct here. Again, at the beginning, I'm trying to find where the ball is because I
16:45 can't, because it's actually blocking the line of where the ball was. And then, you
16:48 know, at the end when I saw the ball, I just had to quickly get back in and make a tackle.
16:52 So yeah, I think being a defender is about sensing the danger, instinctually just kind
16:57 of knowing where the ball might land or knowing where the second ball might land. So yeah,
17:04 I think in most of these or in all of these instances, that is just what I've tried to
17:08 do to try and predict where the ball is going to land, knowing what is likely to happen
17:12 or guessing what's likely going to happen and then adjusting accordingly. So yeah, that's
17:19 just kind of the job that I've got to do.
17:22 We have to make a special mention of your block in the Champions League against Newcastle.
17:27 Was that the most difficult or most spectacular block of your career? And in that moment,
17:33 were you watching the player, the ball, or were you working on instinct?
17:38 So this one, I think, yeah, it's probably the best tackle, goal saving tackle, whatever
17:45 you want to call it, I've done. Honestly, at this point, I've kind of seen it developing
17:51 and I've seen Joel Linton make the run and I know that Amiron's in front of me, but the
17:57 way it's hard for me to kind of get around him in front of him. So I think I've just
18:02 tried to get to the side of him. So Amiron's there and there's another man behind me. So
18:08 I've just got to kind of try and stay in the middle, try and see where the ball is going
18:11 to land. When the ball's going to Joel Linton at the front post, I've just tried to block
18:16 the nearest danger. And honestly speaking, when the ball is just, when I've seen the
18:19 ball come across, it was just kind of guesswork around where the ball was going to land, just
18:23 kind of trying to get my foot there. I wasn't sure if I was going to get the ball first.
18:26 I actually ended up getting the ball on his contact as well, but I wasn't sure if I was
18:31 going to get it first, if I was going to block the shot that he made, whatever, but I was
18:35 just trying to get a body part in the way. So yeah, even though it was guesswork, it
18:41 still turned out right and I had the right mindset and where I wanted to be and what
18:46 I wanted to happen. So yeah, it all worked out in the end and obviously we went on to
18:49 win this game, which was really important.
18:52 Staying with that match, only the post denied you a goal after a counter-attack. How much
18:58 do you enjoy moving into the attack and trying to get on the score sheet?
19:02 Yeah, obviously primarily it's not my job. Primarily my job is to defend the goal, but
19:09 in these kind of situations where you just have the opportunity and you see the space
19:13 to go. I think here I just tried to be too precise. I've tried to go in off the post
19:18 and then after you can see here, I was so tired after making that run. So no, it would
19:22 have been nice to score, but yeah, I think this season I've scored three goals already,
19:26 which is probably my highest so far in my career in terms of a season. So yeah, it's
19:33 been something that I thought about that I need to improve on being dangerous and being
19:36 effective in both boxes. Not as effective in the box this time, but yeah, I think it's
19:43 definitely something I've been working on and trying to improve. And obviously for any
19:48 footballer, it's nice when you score a goal. So being able to score and having the opportunity
19:52 to score and scoring goals is obviously a very good feeling for sure.
19:57 If that had gone in, you would have added to what is already your best total so far,
20:02 three goals. Is that proof that you are becoming more influential in both penalty areas?
20:06 Yeah, I guess you can say so. Yeah, it is, like I said, something that I've been wanting
20:10 to work on being more active in the box and in terms of when we're attacking and when
20:15 we're defending, being more active and trying to stop the opposition scoring, which is my
20:21 first job. But any time you score a goal, it's a great feeling. Three goals this season
20:25 already. I like the goals I scored this year because they're kind of goals where I guess
20:34 a strike would be happy to score when the ball just hits you or you're just in the right
20:37 place. So yeah, those goals I've enjoyed because for this season, collectively as a squad,
20:44 we wanted to score more set pieces or score more from set pieces. And they're all from
20:48 set pieces that I've scored from. So yeah, really, really happy. Just want to try and
20:53 add to that as much as possible where I can. But obviously, like I said, my first job is
20:58 to defend the goal. But yeah, three goals already this season. I think I can't complain
21:04 about that at all.
21:06 Your first goal in Serie A was against Juventus and it demonstrated your aerial prowess. Cristiano
21:12 Ronaldo scored a famous header against Sampdoria when he jumped higher than everyone around
21:18 him and that effort went viral. But are you aware that you actually rose higher than Cristiano
21:24 for your goal against Juventus? Are you more of a superhuman than Cristiano Ronaldo?
21:30 Yeah, I'm aware of this. Obviously, this is my first goal for Milan, so that was a really,
21:36 really proud moment. And then after the game or a few, maybe a few days away, it was after.
21:43 Yeah, I saw that everyone was talking about how I jumped higher than him. More superhuman
21:49 than him? I'm not sure. I mean, he's got so many records. I mean, I'm never going to score
21:54 as many goals as he has. So in that aspect, he's definitely more superhuman than me. But
21:59 maybe on this particular jump, I managed to get the best of him. I know that he's known,
22:06 again, for his jumping and his aerial ability. So again, that's something I want to improve
22:11 on as much as I can. But yeah, this specific goal, yeah, I know about the record and maybe
22:19 one day I can even better it. So that's a little objective of mine, I guess. But yeah,
22:25 for sure. Being more superhuman than him? I'm not sure about that, but I'll take this
22:31 record over him, yeah.
22:33 On the subject of going for goal, you took three kicks in both matches against PSG. Are
22:39 goals from three kicks something you are working on? And are you turning into the new David
22:44 Beckham?
22:45 New David Beckham? No, because I haven't scored one. This one, it was actually going in. It
22:49 was going in. He just got his head on the top of it. But yeah, in training, we have
22:54 a little, we have a rule that after training, before the games, we take three kicks. And
22:59 no, I was surprisingly, for everyone else, no, I don't think I knew I could actually
23:04 take three kicks. So I guess it's just about practicing and just about trying to better.
23:10 We've got a lot of people that take three kicks, like Oli, Theo, Yassin, Isma, even
23:20 Florenzi as well. He's another one. He'll kill me if I don't say him. But yeah, Florenzi
23:24 is another one who can take three kicks. And this season, I haven't scored a three, I think
23:27 I haven't scored one free kick or two free kicks since I've actually been in Milan. So
23:31 yeah, I'm trying to, it is definitely somewhere I can lay my name to. But yeah, I guess it's
23:39 just another bow to the arrow that I could add, for sure.
23:48 You have had so many excellent games for Milan. It's tough to choose one, but we have selected
23:53 your man of the match winning performance against Tottenham in the Champions League.
23:58 Considering how crucial the game was, do you think it was one of your best performances
24:02 in a Milan shirt?
24:04 Yeah, I think it was. That game, going back to England, playing at Tottenham, I think
24:10 it was the last 16. I was back in London, my friends and family were there. Yeah, and
24:15 it was the second leg of the Champions League, we were one-nil up trying to defend the lead.
24:18 And yeah, that game was just about, that was a collective team effort where we kept a clean
24:22 sheet and we just kind of tried to keep it tight and score where we could. Obviously,
24:26 we didn't manage to score, but we didn't concede any goals. And it was actually this game,
24:30 the first leg, I just missed out on because I was injured and I was really down about
24:36 that, I couldn't help the team. But they managed to get the job done in the first leg. And
24:40 then the second leg, I was really, really determined to not mess up the work the team
24:46 had done in the first leg. But yeah, I remember this game really well. It was a really good
24:49 game back in England, as I said. And yeah, I think there's just certain games where you
24:55 don't know why, but you're just in the flow and everything's just happening for you and
24:59 you feel so good. And yeah, this is one of the games where everything was very clear
25:04 and the whole team had a great performance. And yeah, I was really happy with how we played
25:08 and obviously more importantly, happy with how we ended up going through to the quarter-final
25:14 that year. And obviously, playing against Harry Kane, who I know from the national team,
25:19 you have to be extra, extra switched on because of the quality that he has. So yeah, that's
25:24 what we did. He did match the score over both legs and yeah, we're really happy with that.
25:29 I'm a bit angry that I didn't get the foul.
25:34 We discussed your characteristics, but can you tell us about your objectives for the
25:38 future and is there anything you would add to your gameplay analysis?
25:44 For the future, I think it's just about winning. Winning trophies, winning important games,
25:50 playing for Milan, that's why we're here. We know the importance of winning here. We
25:55 know the history that the club has and at the moment we've really written a little page
25:59 of it with the Scudetto win and now we have a squad that is capable of winning more. I
26:06 think the mentality of the squad is good, the harmony of the squad is good. And yeah,
26:11 we want to, as I said, write our own story, our own little chapter in Milan's history.
26:17 And for me, it's just about improving as much as I can. I think there's certain things that
26:25 I know are good about my game, there's certain things I know that I have to improve. Not
26:29 just for myself, but for the team. There's certain things that maybe the team needs from
26:35 me that I need to improve on and certain things I need from myself that I need to improve
26:38 on. So yeah, I think it's just about finding those things, finding those little things
26:44 that I can improve by 1-2% to improve my game overall. So yeah, that's my objective. The
26:51 team's objective is to win and my objective is to win. So if we can marry that together,
26:56 then I'm sure it will be a great rest of the season and great future as well.
27:00 [MUSIC]
27:07 [BOOM]
27:09 (whooshing)
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