The Genoa midfielder spoke of his admiration for the Italian player stating that he was lucky to have played alongside him in Milan, where he got to learn a lot.
The German midfielder has been in awe of the former http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Inter-c39567 Milan midfielder, who has turned on the style in the European Championship. The quiet midfielder has gone about his work in his usual professional manner, but his class
at the European Championships has been there for everyone to see.
He was immense against the English in the quarter-finals of the European Championships, and did not allow http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Steven-Gerrard-c34196 to have his usual influence on the game, which severely handicapped the Three Lions.
Merkel played with Andrea Pirlo before they severed ties with the Rossoneri club, with Pirlo moving to Juventus and Merkel moving to Genoa. The midfielder had nothing but superlatives for his former team-mate, and stated that his
insight of the game is truly outstanding.
The German went on to state that his performances always seemed to amaze one and his foresight was second to none. He was giving an interview to Stuttgarter Zeitung and during his interview with the Stuttgart daily, he was quoted
to have said:
“Pirlo is football. It is incredible what he can do with the ball and how he can anticipate situations. The way that he had the courage to chip that penalty in the shoot-out against http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/England-c749 was pure art – it left you speechless.”
Merkel feels honoured to have played alongside the Italian talisman and he conceded that he learnt many tricks of the trade from observing the Italian on the field of play. He further went on to state that Pirlo was gracious enough
to help him and advise him on his style of play.
“I’m happy that I was able to play alongside a player like him and I learned from him on a daily basis. He used to give me useful advice to help me improve.”
Alexander Merkel has recently signed a contract which binds the German to the club till 2016. The Italians are in the finals of the European Championships after defeating the Germans in the semi-finals.
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