Inter defender Federico Dimarco feels a strong connection to the city of Milan as his home, whilst Azerbaijani city Baku is also special to him as it is where he made his debut for the Nerazzurri.

Speaking in the official matchday program for this evening’s Serie A clash with Torino, the 24-year-old reflected on some personally important places for him in his life and his emergence into his boyhood club the Nerrazzurri’s first team.

Dimarco has had a bit of a winding path to regularly starting for Inter, spending time on loan with Ascoli, Empoli, Sion, and Parma before his two seasons on loan with Hellas Verona in Serie A saw him really raise his profile with a string of impressive performances.

The 24-year-old’s form with Verona earned him a chance in Inter’s first team last season, and he has taken advantage of the opportunity and gained a prominent role in his boyhood club’s first team, although his debut actually came some time before this.

Of the importance of Milan to him, Dimarco said that “It’s my favourite place, it’s my home. I started playing football in the neighbourhood team of Calvairate, before joining Inter.”

“When you start getting closer to the first team, you start to believe a little more,” he continued, “then it’s important to work to make your dreams come true. Another important city is Baku, where I made my debut with Inter,” referring to a Europa League clash with Qarabag in 2014.

“Football has always been a fundamental part of life for me,” he continued, “as a young child my idol was Ronaldo, Il Fenomeno, a unique player.”

Asked to pick former Nerazzurri greats for different roles, Dimarco named “Maicon for a roommate, Samuel I really like, and to come up against in training I’d say Sneijder.”

And for his most memorably goal so far in his career, the 24-year-old said “The goal I choose is the first one I scored in a Nerazzurri shirt in the first team, a free kick against Sampdoria.”

“When I hit the ball I wanted to make contact with the post, but I didn’t think it would be such a beautiful hit,” he said, “then luckily it went straight in.”

“It was a very exciting goal,” he looked back. “And then my first assist was for Skriniar’s goal against Bologna.”