Palermo striker Alberto Gilardino insisted that he doesn’t feel old and he that he is motivated to do well in Sicily.
The 33-year-old also revealed that he hopes to fight his way back into the Italy team.
“First, I’d like to thank the club for believing in me,” said Gilardino at his official presentation.
“I’m well, I might be a 33-year-old but I feel good.
“Over the summer I worked on my own with a personal trainer.
“I arrived in Palermo very motivated, I want to do well here and reach 200 Serie A goals.”
The Italian international also admitted that it will be difficult for him to replace Paulo Dybala after he joined Juventus.
“It’s never easy to replace a player who is still in the fans’ hearts but I’m thinking about Palermo,” acknowledged Gilardino.
“I arrived at AC Milan just after Hernan Crespo left after he scored two goals in a Champions League final and I went to Fiorentina after Luca Toni left the club.”
The former Bologna forward also announced that he hopes to give Azzurri coach Antonio Conte something to think about.
“I need to think about doing my job and scoring goals and then it will be up to Conte to make a decision,” Gilardino went on.
“I would like to score goals with [Franco] Vazquez, both for Palermo and the national team.”
The striker spoke specifically about the Rosanero’s next opponents Carpi who will travel to the Stadio Renzo Barbera on September 13.
“They [Carpi] were after me in the summer,” revealed Gilardino.
“They presented themselves well but I stalled because I wanted to go on holiday.
“We’re playing against them on Sunday and I’d like to play but it’s up to the coach whether to use me or not.”
