Yuto Nagatomo was full of praise for Javier Zanetti whom he described as his role model after scoring his first goal for Inter Milan in the win against Genoa
The Japanese fullback signed for Inter last January in a loan deal that also saw David Santon move the other way to Cesena. Nagatomo hasn't impressed enough since his move but yesterday’s performance that saw him score his first goal for Inter would have definitely been encouraging for Leonardo.
While he did admit that life at Milan was hard at first, he has adapted and believes that Zanetti helped him massively in adjusting life at Milan.
He said: "When I arrived at Inter, communication was a little difficult but now everything is almost perfect and I am taking a lot of satisfaction from playing here. Zanetti is my point of reference, my model to follow, the person who takes care of me, gives me advice and tells me the way."
The fullback also thanked the club and its fans for having trust on him and he also insisted that he would do everything he could to repay Leonardo's faith in him.
"I am the one who should be thanking Inter for this opportunity and everything they have given me during this period," Nagatomo told the Inter Channel.
"I also thank the supporters, as my work is principally in defence and I’m not supposed to score goals, so what happened is a wonderful gift that I give to the club and the fans. Leonardo is a great coach, so I wanted to thank him by bringing over my joy for everything that he has done since I came here."
While he did admit that life at Milan was hard at first, he has adapted and believes that Zanetti helped him massively in adjusting life at Milan.
He said: "When I arrived at Inter, communication was a little difficult but now everything is almost perfect and I am taking a lot of satisfaction from playing here. Zanetti is my point of reference, my model to follow, the person who takes care of me, gives me advice and tells me the way."
The fullback also thanked the club and its fans for having trust on him and he also insisted that he would do everything he could to repay Leonardo's faith in him.
"I am the one who should be thanking Inter for this opportunity and everything they have given me during this period," Nagatomo told the Inter Channel.
"I also thank the supporters, as my work is principally in defence and I’m not supposed to score goals, so what happened is a wonderful gift that I give to the club and the fans. Leonardo is a great coach, so I wanted to thank him by bringing over my joy for everything that he has done since I came here."
