Kvarastella. Kvaradisiaco. Kvaradona. You name it. Kvicha Kvaratskhelia has earned many nicknames since moving to Italy, as his adoring public’s way of expressing the impact he’s had in Naples.<\/p>\n
After all, within just a few months of his arrival in 2022 he dragged Napoli to a historic third Scudetto \u2013 coming 33 years after their last triumph, thanks to a certain Diego Maradona \u2013 and then qualified for UEFA EURO 2024 with Georgia, where they went on to reach the last 16.<\/p>\n
Those achievements have made the 23-year-old a hero for both club and country, but the winger is keen to do more. Kvaratskhelia spoke to FIFA about his dreams of taking Georgia to the world stage, Napoli to European acclaim, working under Antonio Conte, becoming a father and more.<\/p>\n
Kvicha, you recently became a father for the first time. How are you finding it?
\nMy life has changed completely! I suddenly felt a huge responsibility to become a father. The birth of my son has brought me immense happiness and now I see things in a different way. Each day I wake up happy and I hope everyone can experience such happiness in their lives.<\/p>\n
After scoring against Bologna recently, you dedicated your celebration to him. How has becoming a father changed you as a footballer?
\nAll of a sudden, I felt even more motivated. You start to work even harder, because you know that everything that you do is for your son. I know that my son will see all that when he gets older, and this makes me so happy and it\u2019s difficult to put it into words. These emotions make me stronger. I try to channel this feeling on to the pitch and that\u2019s why I dedicate my goals to him, so that he\u2019ll see that when he grows up. I hope that he\u2019ll also be a footballer in the future.<\/p>\n
What is the most important thing that you\u2019ll try to teach your son?
\nAbove all, I want to teach him to be strong. Life is full of hardships, but you have to find a way to overcome them and always pick yourself up when you fall. I want him to overcome every obstacle and be determined in the face of each challenge that life throws at him. I don\u2019t have any other specific advice that I would give him. My path has been rather difficult and I tackled each challenge that I came across with purpose and determination. I\u2019m happy with the path that I\u2019ve taken in my life so far.<\/p>\n
What were you like as a child? What were little Kvaratskhelia’s dreams?
\nI always dreamt about becoming a professional footballer, but at the start it didn\u2019t seem real. When I went to watch Georgia play, I could have never imagined that one day I would be stepping on to the pitch myself with other kids supporting me from the stands. I learnt that anything is possible in life, as long as you have the conviction and the will to do everything in your power to make it happen. Dreams do come true. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia achieved his dream of becoming a footballer and playing for his country.<\/p>\n
What does it mean to you to be able to represent Georgia?
\nI want to do something special for my country. Looking at what I do at the moment, I believe that it\u2019s helping Georgia and Georgia is helping me. I\u2019m immensely proud to be Georgian. I thank God that I was born in Georgia and that I am a son of this historic country. I will always do my best to make my country proud, regardless of what happens next.<\/p>\n
You scored in Georgia’s win over Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal at the EURO. How amazing was it to be able to come up against him?
\nThe match against Portugal in the Euros was the most important game. I was playing against the player that I followed and idolised since I was a young kid. Before the game I said to myself \u2018this is my moment\u2019 and I knew I needed to show that on the pitch. Playing against your idol is a huge motivation. It was incredible. He came to me and wished me good luck. I was over the moon and even more convinced that Georgia would win. I gave everything that evening and I helped my team to achieve a historic result.<\/p>\n
Qualifying for World Cup 26 starts next March. What would it mean for you to be there?
\nIn the last few months we showed that Georgia have so much to offer. We will do everything we can to make our dream happen and play in the World Cup. We believe that we can qualify and that is the main thing. We have the ability and the character to turn this dream into reality.<\/p>\n
Given your ability to score, assist, dribble and defend, are there any areas you’re looking to improve in?
\nEvery player has areas where they can improve and I\u2019m no exception. That can be achieved through training and dedication. Without going into too much detail, I would say that I want to improve all aspects of my game.<\/p>\n
What pushes you to always give your all when you\u2019re on the pitch?
\nLove for the game. It\u2019s given me everything. I feel free when I step on the pitch and I feel happy with the ball at my feet. I\u2019m fortunate to be able to do what I love \u2013 what I want to do.<\/p>\n
Antonio Conte really wanted you to stay at Napoli. How much does his trust help you?
\nI\u2019m happy to have the opportunity to work with Antonio Conte. Someone had told me that he was a great coach and I\u2019m happy to be able to experience that first-hand. He is one of the best in the world and with him I\u2019m trying to improve physically as well as tactically. I think that with his help, I can achieve the desired results at both club and international level.<\/p>\n
You were nominated for The Best Men’s Player Award at The Best FIFA Football Awards in 2023. How happy did that make you?
\nIt was a beautiful feeling to be nominated for this award. It gave me more confidence and motivation and it showed that it was not just a coincidence. I will do everything I can to get back on that stage and I\u2019m certain that I\u2019ll do it. I\u2019m working hard towards this, and I firmly believe that all my hard work will pay off.<\/p>\n
Both Napoli and Georgia fans live and breathe football. Do you see similarities between the two?
\nThe main thing that the two sets of fans have in common is their love of football. This sport is special for both and that\u2019s why I haven\u2019t had any problems and I\u2019ve settled down well in Napoli. I\u2019m happy to have the support of both this club and my national team.<\/p>\n
Kvaratskhelia, Haaland, Mbappe, Bellingham, Yamal, Vinicius… Is the future of football set to be as exciting as the recent past?
\nThose names would suggest that the future of football is in safe hands, but we have to respect the legends of the sport like Messi and Ronaldo. They are still playing and performing at a high standard for the fans. I am fortunate to have played in the same era as them and to have experienced the spectacular football that they have gifted us along with the other legends of their generation.<\/p>\n
And finally, what are your dreams for the coming years?
\nMore than anything, I dream about qualifying for the World Cup with Georgia and winning the Champions League with my club. I hope to turn these dreams into a reality. Winning the most important trophy in club football is every footballer\u2019s dream, and to take part in a World Cup is every Georgian\u2019s dream. I believe that it would be a fitting tribute to all those who have represented Georgia in the past. We want to follow in their footsteps, achieve this goal and make our country proud.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Kvarastella. Kvaradisiaco. Kvaradona. You name it. Kvicha Kvaratskhelia has earned many nicknames since moving to Italy, as his adoring public’s way of expressing the impact he’s had in Naples. After all, within just a few months of his arrival in 2022 he dragged Napoli to a historic third Scudetto \u2013 coming 33 years after their […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":1032594,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20966],"tags":[9648,27192],"class_list":["post-1032593","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fifa-news","tag-fifa","tag-fifa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1032593","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1032593"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1032593\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1032594"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1032593"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1032593"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1032593"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}