Mens

Willy Gnonto: "I'm really happy at the moment"

The Italian speaks to Matthew Lewis and Dom Matteo for the Leeds United podcast

willy gnonto website.png

"\u003Cp\u003EThe latest episode of the Leeds United Podcast is out and Leeds United winger Willy Gnonto joins Dom Matteo and Matthew Lewis to discuss everything from his early years in Italy to his brilliant form in 2024.\u003C/p\u003E""\u003Chr /\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EKey Quotes From The Podcast:\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003E2024 has been fantastic for you, to get your head down and get on with it, it must be feeling like a fresh start and that you\u2019ve smashed it so far?\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201CI think 2024 is going really well for me and for the team as well. I believe in my ability, I\u2019m confident, I just believe in myself and the work that I put in, even when things weren\u2019t going well. You know how football is, it\u2019s mentally tough and you can feel a bit down but I\u2019ve always been lucky to have my family and teammates with me.\u00A0\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201CI\u2019m really happy at the moment, I\u2019m happy because I\u2019m finally showing what I can do and helping the team as well.\u201D\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cimg src=\u0022https://dc6vmiz8c91pk.cloudfront.net/media/22/38227244896084/gnonto_2.png\u0022 alt=\u0022gnonto 2\u0022 /\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EParticularly in this league, you\u2019ve got to win ugly sometimes and it seems we\u2019ve figured out a way to do that. You\u2019ve got to put a solid graft in and with the schedule that must have been tough, wasn\u2019t it four games in 10 days recently?\u00A0\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201CI didn\u2019t even know it was possible! That was the first time in my professional career [it happened]. When you have that many games, it\u2019s tough to play sexy football every time.\u00A0\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201CSo, you have to make sure, if you are not at your best, that you can take the points. If you win ugly, then you win ugly. This was the difference between a couple of games we had won and before. Maybe before, we were always close but a situation would go against us, whereas now we are on it and every situation is for us. Sheffield Wednesday, first half we weren\u2019t that good, 1-0, second half we play better and we win 2-0. Stoke, not the best game but we won 1-0, so I think these are the wins that can make a difference at the end.\u201D\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EI would love to get to know you as a guy, you\u2019re Italian, you played in Switzerland, how did you get into football?\u003C/strong\u003E\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201CI used to live close to a 5-a-side pitch, so I could see from my window everyone playing and I always wanted to play. This was in Verbania, about one hour from Milan. I started to play with my dad, my cousins and my friends just outside my house.\u00A0\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201CI was lucky enough to have parents like mine, because they have made incredible sacrifices for me. I\u2019m in a position now where football and Leeds is life and I feel that is the best gift I can give to them. They moved with me and we all live together.\u00A0\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u201CI was first with Inter Milan, from eight to 16 just before COVID. I decided with my family that if I really wanted to play professional football, going to a lower league was the perfect choice for me, because I had the chance to play straight away with Zurich. I wouldn\u2019t be here if I didn\u2019t go to Zurich.\u201D\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cimg src=\u0022https://dc6vmiz8c91pk.cloudfront.net/media/22/40764051023165/gnonto_1.png\u0022 alt=\u0022gnonto 1\u0022 /\u003E\u003C/p\u003E"

Related Content

  1. 01
  2. 02
  3. 03