Read the transcript from Marco Di Vaio's press conference on Friday morning, just a few days after the Impact announced that the Italian Designated Player would return with the team in 2014.
On if he ever truly considered retirement…
When I had to go back to Italy this summer, in July, because my mother-in-law was having health issues, it came up. My family decided to stay there and we were unprepared to be a part, so it was hard. But after her health improved, we discussed it as a family. I am having one of the best seasons in my career, so it would be tough to retire after that. It was hard to deal with being away from my family in this tough moment. But now, my family will stay in Italy next season and we have the time to prepare for that reality as a family and deal with it.
“We can build something important for the team, the club, the city and the fans.”
- Marco Di Vaio
Were you hoping to inspire the team with the announcement as it goes through this tough stretch?
I hope so. I hope it could bring something positive to the club and the team in the short-term, but in the long-term, I wanted to make this announcement before the end of the season to show that I was here for next season no matter what. If we made the playoffs or not, that wouldn’t change my mind. I’m here next season no matter how it ends this season, but I hope it ends in the playoffs.
What’s left for you to accomplish as a player?
A championship… We want to win something important here in Montreal. We work hard to reach our goal every day. We want to make the playoffs this season but even more so, build for next season. My job here isn’t done yet. We can build something important for the team, the club the city and the fans.
Ever consider playing in Bologna or elsewhere?
I never thought about going to continue my playing career anywhere else. Bologna had offered me an administrative position, so if I had decided to retire and remain in early, it would have been in that capacity. There is no other place I would have continued to be a player than with the Impact.
Joey Saputo
The significance of Marco returning next season…
When Nick and I were looking for a Designated Player, we wanted someone that could bring as much on the field as off of it. We wanted a type of player that would understand the culture here, what we were trying to do and would come for the right reasons. I have to honestly say that we hit the jackpot with Marco. Without a doubt, if Marco had decided not to come back, he would have left big shoes to fill. Being a family man, I understood the predicament that he was in, but I’m extremely happy that he decided to come back.
Nick De Santis
On what it means to have Marco here one more season…
Since Marco has been here, he has been the consummate professional. He is one of the hardest working pros I’ve ever seen, and if you ever have the chance to see him at training, you’d see how he wants to win all the time, even in training. He has helped bring notoriety to the club and to the league and has opened doors not only in Europe, but elsewhere. His return shows the world that the Impact, who still has a lot of growing to do as a club, is a place where players are treated well and somewhere that someone of Marco’s stature would return to play.
