Allison: I left Roma in tears

Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson admits “I cried for a long time” when he left Roma, and discusses playing Napoli at the Stadio San Paolo.
The Brazilian briefly became the world’s most expensive goalkeeper this summer when he joined the Reds for €72.5m, but he admits leaving Italy wasn’t easy.
“Leaving Rome was difficult, I cried for a long time and my wife did too,” Alisson confessed in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport.
“It’s right to be honest, I made a professional choice. I made a step forward in my career and Roma got a big fee.
“I decided with my head to go to Liverpool, but my heart was full of tears. I spent two special years in Rome, my daughter was born there and I have many friends there, even outside of football.
“There were many times that I’d just walk around the city at night. The Trevi fountain is a beautiful sight at night, but my favourite place is the Colosseum, you can breathe the history.
“I was very happy in Rome, but when a player chooses where to play you have to consider other things. I have big ambitions, so do Liverpool, and now I’m in the most important league in the world.
“Serie A isn’t far from the Premier League though, it’s just different, less intense.
“But I learned a lot in Italy thanks to the goalkeeper coach Marco Savorani, who was crucial for the growth of me and [Wojciech] Szczesny.
“He’s one of the most important people in my life, he helped me both on and off the pitch.
“Juve’s dominance is based on finances, in the Premier League everyone buys big players but in Serie A unfortunately that’s not the case.”
Alisson will face Napoli at the Stadio San Paolo, and he was asked if the Kop or the Curva Sud is louder.
“That’s a beautiful challenge, they’re two great sets of fans that have few rivals across the world. You can hear the Kop, it’s there, but when the Sud is full it’s a real spectacle.
“It’s very passionate in Naples, I like to play at the San Paolo. The fans always sing, they’re never quiet.
“It’ll be a great challenge in a great group, Napoli drawing in Belgrade only helps us if we do our part.
“Last year in Naples with Roma we won 4-2 but it was very difficult, Napoli shot on goal 13 times so I conceded twice and had to make 11 saves.
“The strength of [Carlo] Ancelotti’s team is that it’s the same squad they’ve had for the past few years.”