Andrea Ranocchia spoke to Gianlucadimarzio.com on his acclimatisation at Hull City: “The first day I arrived in the locker room, they forced me to stand on a chair and sing a song, I had no idea what to sing, so I started with the Italian national anthem! I chose to challenge myself by accepting the proposal from Hull City and to try for a return to the national team, but at this moment I am above all focused on living this experience to the max. It is fun, although there are hardly any tactics at work here. It’s mainly instinct and physical strength. The players are so strong and fast, but I am settling in well, mainly because the Italian tactical school is the best in the world, so I’m prepared for anything. I do struggle with the language and driving on the ‘wrong’ side of the road was a problem – on the first day alone I went into the wrong way down two crossings. I’ve already scraped the rims on my car wheels on the pavements. I hired an English teacher and study six hours a week. The problem is I speak ‘proper’ English, so I have problems above all when my teammates are talking among themselves. Then it’s tricky to understand what they’re saying. Our goalkeeper is Swiss, so he speaks quite good Italian, while Abel Hernandez played for Palermo and we’d already met as opponents. I will admit, I’ve been here for a month and a half, but I am yet to see the sun. It rains practically every day. I really miss pasta, too.”
Source: gianlucadimarzio.com
