Viste da vicino | Ivana Naydenova
Verona - A new appointment with ‘Viste da vicino’, the Yellow-Blue interview programme that focuses on the First team players of Hellas Verona Women.
The 11th episode is dedicated to Ivana Naydenova, the Bulgarian midfielder born in 2001. Ivana tells us about her beginnings in the world of football in Sofia, her arrival in Italy and the relationships she has managed to build here in Verona.
Ivana, how did you start playing football? "In Bulgaria there is a tradition called 'Proshtapulnic'. It's a custom that consists of letting your son or daughter, when they are a few months old, choose between various objects, all different from each other, placed on a table a few metres away. Crawling, the child reaches the table and chooses one of the objects, which is thought to represent what they will do in the future. I had chosen the ball from among the many objects present. I could have chosen a packet of medicine, and maybe I would have become a doctor, or a pen to become a teacher or a book to become a writer... In short, maybe it was my destiny to become a soccer player. As a child, after all, I loved to play with a ball everywhere: at home, in the street, with my friends or even alone".
Which team did you start out with? "The first club I played for was called Eurostars, it was a small men's team in Sofia. I started playing in 2012 and stayed there until 2015. When I was fourteen, during my last year there, I had become the captain even though I was the only girl. The following year, as I could no longer play with the boys, I was contacted by one of the strongest women's teams in Bulgaria, NSA. I also played with them in the UEFA Women's Champions League for five years. And so, also at the age of fourteen, I made my debut in the top European women's competition, playing for 70 minutes".
In 2019 you also achieved a special title with this team... "Yes, in 2019 I was selected as the best player in the Bulgarian league. I believe that to achieve satisfaction in our lives we need to work and always think about the present, without letting ourselves be influenced by the past or the future. I remember thinking at that moment that my work had finally paid off, and that that award was the just reward for the sacrifices I had made. I stayed at the NSA until 2021, when I moved to Italy".
Why Italy of all places? "My former prosecutor was a great friend of my coach at the NSA, and so he suggested I go and play for Orobica, in Italy, in Serie C. From Bulgaria to Italian women's football, it seemed like a dream, and so I immediately decided to set off on this adventure. The first year was a bit more difficult for me, being so far from home. But then I love Bulgaria and one day, when I retire from playing football, I'll go back there to live. It was a tough year, but at least I wasn't alone, as there were three other Bulgarian girls in the team with me. The following year I moved to Res Roma, where I started to feel less homesick. Of course, Rome is really big compared to Arcene, a town in the province of Bergamo (laughs, ed.)".
And after Rome you chose Verona... "I wanted something more, and I knew that Hellas Verona was the best team I could choose to continue my journey and improve as a player. And then Verona is beautiful, it's where I really found my balance. If I had to close my eyes, I would imagine a sunset seen from Castel San Pietro, with a singer and guitars. That's enough for me to be happy".
How did you settle in Verona? "It was difficult at first, of course. I'm a rather reserved person and I don't talk much, I prefer to keep to myself and listen and analyse. However, things changed quickly and now I feel great, both on and off the pitch, with the girls, the team and the staff. The person who helped me the most during this period was Nicole Costa, a person very similar to me. With her, from the beginning, I felt safe, I knew I could be myself with her".
Is your family in Bulgaria able to follow football and watch your matches? "I don't think my father Emil missed a single one of my matches when I played in Sofia, from 2012 to 2021. He was always there in the stands. He still follows me now, as much as he can, despite the distance. My mother Desislava and my brother Zlatko, on the other hand, are not so passionate about football and sport in general. My brother is seven years older than me; after graduating from the Italian High School in Sofia, he studied at the Polytechnic University of Milan, before returning to Bulgaria. So he too has quite a connection with Italy".
What's the best memory you've had so far thanks to football? "There are so many moments that I remember with pleasure, but if I had to choose one, I'd say my goal against Romania in the Under 19 National Team, in the second stage of the Elite Round. For the first time, the Bulgarian Under 19 women's team reached the second national stage in this competition. I was also the team captain. We played in the group stage against Italy, against whom we lost, against Portugal, where we drew 2-2, and against Romania, in which match I scored the final goal to make it 1-0. We managed to qualify for the third stage, where we met Holland, Iceland and Russia, having been selected again as the best third-placed team. I have many happy memories of the National Team, including my first call-up to the First Team".
Who is your football idol? ’I've always supported Arsenal, ever since I was a child playing FIFA 07 and always choosing this team in career mode to play with Henry and Van Persie, and a few years later with Özil. But I have to be honest and admit that Rodri is the absolute best player in my position. He's always in the right place at the right time, making the right move. He's like a river: the action doesn't start or end with him, but flows through his game. He's the connection and the balance of his team".
Outside the field, who is Ivana? "I'm a simple person who likes to spend time outdoors, as far away from my mobile phone as possible. I don't talk much, I'm always a bit shy. I like to discuss only things that I consider to have an important and profound value. I like to read books and take long walks. My flatmates, Madda (Nava, ed.), Fede (Anghileri, ed.), Case (Casellato, ed.) and Nicky (Costa, ed.) are always shocked by the long walks I take, they always ask me where I'm going (laughs, ed.). I simply walk aimlessly, a bit like I used to do in Bulgaria near my favourite childhood place, a family holiday home about 60 kilometres from Sofia, in Dzurovo. For me it's a place of peace of mind, where I really feel good".
What does football mean to you? "For me, football is 'Nacin na izraziavane'. It's really difficult to translate it in a few words, but if I try I would say that it is 'my way of expressing myself, in space and in emotions'. It is thanks to football that I can express myself and feel free".