Jean-Pierre Nsame, Como striker who arrived during the January transfer window, gave a long interview to the Como official website retracing the stages of his career:
Jean-Pierre says that he already had the ball at his feet as a child and that it was by trying to chase a ball that he learned to walk. Of football, he says: “It is a sport that gives joy and unites people.” The falling in love continued over time and in 2006, in front of the TV for the world final between France and Italy, it reached its peak: “The atmosphere of that match was magical. It was from there that I understood that I wanted to become a professional player, to experience and make people experience the emotions I had experienced during those World Cups.”
The emotion of a title after 32 years
And the emotions don’t take long to arrive. We are in Bern, Switzerland, it is 2018. Young Boys have not won the championship for 32 years. Nsame comes in and scores the winning goal in the 89th minute: “One of the best moments of my career so far, the whole city was waiting for that title,” he recalls. And that’s when the 2006 World Cup comes back to Jean-Pierre’s mind: “This time I was the protagonist, I was grateful to be able to live that moment. And the desire to win has grown more and more.”
The example of Cristiano Ronaldo
In the world of football, Jean-Pierre does not have an idol, but rather a person who inspired him: “Cristiano Ronaldo. For me it represents the mentality that, without work, you achieve nothing. Of course, talent is also needed, but it’s not enough. If you have talent but don’t work you simply remain a talented player. Ronaldo represents the best example in this sense and following his career has given me the push to continuously improve myself and achieve important goals.”
The Old Trafford tunnel
Playing in the Champions League is “incredible” for Jean-Pierre. And that time at Old Trafford, home to Manchester United, the memories of the games he watched on TV with his brother came back to mind: “When we came out of the tunnel, for a moment I had a flash. It was like I was imagining my brother on the other side of the screen. And it was as if I too projected myself on the other side and looked at Manchester. I would never have imagined that one day I would travel through that tunnel, which I will have seen a thousand times on TV.”
At the service of the team
Regarding the way he plays, Jean-Pierre feels similar to Karim Benzema: “I like the mentality he transmits on the pitch. He is a complete striker, who knows how to score, but who also knows how to play with and for his teammates.” This is the style that Nsame prefers: “I consider myself a team player. On the pitch I like to help my teammates, open spaces. Obviously I also like it when others open spaces for me. And assist and score.”
Always improve
Behind what he is, behind what he has achieved there is important work, which passes through physical preparation, nutrition, sleep, the mind: “I have my own staff, an athletic trainer, a dietician, a mental coach. All of them help me, together with my family, to maintain the level achieved. And I always try to improve, physically and tactically. As long as I remain in the world of football I will continue to do so. I still have this drive, this flame, as if I were 20 years old.”
Teaming up at the restaurant
Arriving in Como, Jean-Pierre was welcomed by his new companions. Among those with whom he bonded the most, Daniele Baselli: “The more you know your teammates off the pitch, the easier it is to play together.” With some of them, he organized a first dinner in Como at the restaurant, at the Locanda dei Giurati, before the series of matches with the direct opponents in the championship: “I wanted to organize it at that moment to unite us even more and face this period as best as possible important”.
Dragon Ball Z
A special place in my heart is occupied by cartoons: “They remind me of my childhood and I always try to stay in touch with my childhood self. At home I have a photo of myself playing the game transformed into a drawing of Dragon Ball Z, a series that I love.”
The dream is priceless
In life, for Jean-Pierre, there are not only football role models, such as Ronaldo and Benzema. There are also Rafael Nadal, LeBron James. And then the entrepreneurs who have created large companies and brands: “I understood from them that what interests me most is not what they have achieved, but the path they have followed and the difficulties encountered on that path. I understood that they are people who dream big. It’s as if they were reaching for the stars to reach the sky. They say the dream is priceless. Indeed this is what makes the dream priceless. But behind this dream there is always great work.”
