Swiss national team player Simon Sohm on his new life in Bologna, Italian football, the crunch clash against AS Roma in the Europa League and his World Cup dream.
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- Simon Sohm from Zurich is only 24, but has already been playing in Italy for almost six years. Bologna is his third station after Parma and Florence.
- Now he and Bologna will face league rivals AS Roma in the Europa League. He tells blue Sport why he expects a heated duel.
Simon Sohm, you’ve been at FC Bologna since the end of January. Have you settled in quickly?
It all happened very quickly, I immediately looked for an apartment and quickly found something. I also got to grips with the city and the club very quickly. My teammates and the people at the club were all very friendly and helped me.
Remo Freuler being there certainly helped too.
Yes, of course. Remo and I have known each other a bit longer from the national team, of course.
Your playing time at Fiorentina was okay. Why did you switch?
It was a difficult season at Fiorentina, we were struggling. And then the opportunity arose to go to Bologna. I found it exciting, also because Bologna plays in Europe.
What are your goals with Bologna?
We want to be in a European place in the league at the end of the season. The higher up, the better. And in the Europa League, we want to get as far as possible. Preferably win, of course, that’s the goal. But of course there are some strong teams in the Europa League. Although we’re out of the Cup, it can still be a positive season. Especially if we carry on as we have done in the last five games. We’ve now won five in a row.
What makes Bologna so strong at the moment?
The team is extremely close. I have the feeling that everyone gets on well with everyone else. Even when I arrived, I immediately felt at home. There are also good players here, of course. Every training session is very intensive and of a good quality.
Now it’s time for the Italian clash against AS Roma in the Europa League. How special is that?
It will certainly be an exciting duel, Roma are also in a good mood at the moment. And because it’s an Italian duel, it will certainly be a bit more heated. I’m curious to see how it will turn out. I’m looking forward to the two games.
What are you expecting?
It should definitely be very heated. Roma coach Gian Piero Gasperini is known for playing one-on-one all over the pitch. And we do that relatively often. I can’t say whether there will be many goals or not. It should be exciting in any case.
In the Champions League, the last Italian club Atalanta is on the brink of elimination. How deep is the crisis in Italian football?
I don’t know if it’s such a big crisis. Last year, Inter were still in the Champions League final. Now they’ve surprisingly been knocked out against Bodo Glimt. I wouldn’t call it a major crisis right now. There are always years when things go a little better and years when things go worse. For me, it’s clear that the English league is the best in Europe. After that, I would say that the top five leagues are relatively evenly matched.
Something else. The World Cup kicks off in June. Being in Murat Yakin’s squad will be your big dream.
Of course, that would be a huge dream. I’ve never been to a World Cup or European Championship before. I hope I can be there.