Inter defender Bastoni: ‘In Italian football defeat feels like the end of the world’

Inter defender Alessandro Bastoni says Italian football could learn important lessons from the culture of the NBA, above all, a healthier relationship with defeat and public criticism.

Speaking to Rivista Undici, the centre-back reflected on what he admires most about American basketball and how it contrasts with the environment surrounding Serie A players.

“The thing I envy most about that world is knowing how to accept defeat,” Bastoni admitted, with quotes via CalcioMercato. “In our game, losing feels like the end of the world. But when you play so much, it happens: you can’t always be at your peak. There’s always another chance to show your value.”

Bastoni also pointed to the openness of American athletes and the more relaxed dynamic with fans. “They express themselves freely without being attacked or judged. In the US they are much more advanced than us. It doesn’t weigh on me, I have to live with it because I chose this world.”

Earlier in the week, Undici released the section of the interview in which Bastoni discussed Inter’s Champions League final defeat to PSG. He offered a frank assessment of the team’s performance that night.

“It was a strange thing. We came from a semi-final that will go down in Champions League history, but in the final PSG were going at twice our speed. It’s hard to explain, it’s as if we didn’t realise just how strong they were.”

Despite the disappointment, he stressed the pride within the squad. “We reached two finals in three years, which is not easy. Of course we’d have preferred to win them, but these are experiences we carry with us.”