Lazio midfielder Davide Frattesi admits he didn’t watch a single World Cup game last summer, but the gap between the Azzurri and the other top countries remains wide, and he compares debutant Alessandro Romano to Nemanja Matic.

Frattesi held a press conference at Coverciano today, Wednesday, September 23, on the third day of preparations for Friday’s Nations League match against Belgium.

Frattesi, 27, joined Lazio from Inter last summer and has already netted three goals in five Serie A appearances this season.

“Last year I didn’t have the same consistency, and quite rightly so, because different negative things piled up. When you start again, you do it full throttle, as if you had been saving all your energy for that moment,” he told reporters, including Football Italia.

Frattesi has now become a key Lazio player, whereas over the last three seasons at Inter, he had never been a regular starter.

“In these three years at Inter, there were moments that can’t be replicated in terms of emotions,” he said.

“As I wrote in my farewell post on Instagram, there were many highs and lows. Very low lows and incredibly high highs. You can only feel really good at a place if, in the end, you get to play. That’s the truth.

“I’ve started enjoying myself again, and I’m happy to have that enjoyment I had as a kid, at Sassuolo, and at different moments at Inter.”