Jamie Vardy: Full first press conference as Cremonese player

Jamie Vardy took part in his first press conference as a Cremonese player today, speaking to reporters from various outlets at the violin museum in Cremona.

What pushed you to sign for Cremonese?

Originally there was talk of it happening and obviously coming into a different country, its tough, so you have to make sure you have them conversations with my wife, my kids, loved ones because it is gonna be a big change but one thing that happened was, thanks to technology, I was able to get on a zoom call with the manager. We spoke for 45mins-1hr, showing his passion for the club and how he is wanting to push on. And just looking in his eyes and what he wanted, that really resonated with myself and I think as a footballer, it is always nice to feel wanted. You always wanna go straight in and work hard right away, work hard on the training field and when you’re called upon, give your all in the game.

Your arrival in Cremona has been compared to the reception Cristiano Ronaldo got at Juventus. How do you feel after your first few days in Cremona, with the fans obviously but also with the coach Davide Nicola and your new teammates?

It’s been absolutely brilliant. I was told it was quite a quiet city which I’ll be honest for the past few days its not been that quiet. But it has been really enjoyable meeting the fans. Whether I’ve gone out for dinner or lunch, getting to explore, going to the top of the tower was unbelievable with the panoramic views but the football side, language is difficult at the moment but the one thing thats always constant is football is its own language. You can always talk through football so being able to train with the lads and being made to feel welcome, its been a great start and definitely a great first week.

A lot of excitement surrounds the club, six points from six, top of the league and newly-promoted. There has been even more buzz since you joined and more spotlight. Having helped perform a miracle at Leicester, do you see any parallels, can history be rewritten in a similar way? Is there scope to achieve something really special?

I think having sit down with the manager and the owner I think the main task is making sure we stay in the league and to be honest thats how it was when I was at Leicester. It was never any ‘we are going to go for this’, it was always ‘we need to stay int he league’, thats the main thing. So all you do, you go out, you take each game one-by-one, give your all, what will be will be. Back then we ended up winning quite a lot and thats football at the end of the day. On a normal match day its 11 v 11 and anyone can beat anyone so we’ll just be working as hard as we can on the training field to make sure we’re ready for every single game that comes up. Take them one by one and see where that takes us.

I watched some of your training sessions on Instagram this summer and I assume the international break has been helpful to get to know what is expected of you. Do you think you could play already on Monday against Verona?

Yeah I mean like you say during the summer on the Instagram I was making sure that I was keeping myself fit and in shape. I managed to enjoy a little longer summer with my family which as footballers we don’t usually get so that definitely benefitted me as well. And like you say, getting back into training has been great up till now with getting used to how the team works together, what the patterns are, what’s asked of me as a striker so all in all its been great. I’ve kept myself as fit as I possibly could and now that fitness is going up every day with training. So, as for Monday that’s obviously not down to me – I’d happily say yes but that’s obviously down to the manager to pick.

You mentioned your family on a number of occasions. I imagine your kids are your biggest fans. Did you promise anything before you moved here to Italy and to Cremona?

No, there was nothing promised. Obviously, I had to tell them its their Dad moving to a different country and they need to know. But there was a lot of excitement from them and in due course they will be out here but obviously there is a process to go through with the visas. It’s going to be an enjoyable experience, not just for myself playing football but for my family – learning new languages, getting used to what its like living Italy so its one thing as a family we are all really looking forward to.

LEICESTER, ENGLAND – MAY 18: Jamie Vardy of Leicester City acknowledges the fans during a lap of honour following his final appearance as a Leicester City player in the Premier League match between Leicester City FC and Ipswich Town FC at The King Power Stadium on May 18, 2025 in Leicester, England. (Photo by George Wood/Getty Images)

Its the first time you’ve played outside of England, what did you think about Serie A before you signed for Cremonese and what do you think about the Italian top flight now that you’ve spent your first few days and weeks here and before the deal was finalised did you have the chance to speak to Claudio Ranieri?

No I mean to be fair ever since I was a kid, back in the UK, they used to show Serie A games on Channel Four so it was great to have football on a Sunday morning to be able to watch it but obviously over the years you get to see the Italian games because every single game is live now and there is always a channel you can pick it up on. Its a really good league, one of the top leagues. Its slightly different to the Premier League, probably more tactical and a bit more possession but even last year I was playing with Enzo Maresca and he’s brought that style with him to the UK so its not like I’ve not been involved with teams that can play that way.

I haven’t had the chance to speak with Ranieri yet but I know he sung my praises to the manager so I better not let him down.

How many offers did you turn down? And whether you have had an idol in Serie A in the past?

I don’t feel comfortable with announcing numbers on teams that came in or anything. People come in and at the end of the day it was down to me to make a decision and my decision with my family was obviously Cremonese and that’s one that I stand by and looking forward to it. And as for an idol it was more back in the day when I was a kid watching football and seeing the likes of Del Piero scoring week in week out is always very enjoyable to watch when you’re a striker yourself.

What was it specifically that Nicola said to convince you and make you feel this is the place for you?

I think the thing for me personally is throughout my career I’ve been doubted. Always have, always will still. What I’ve always managed to do is turn that around and prove them all wrong. And I think speaking with the manager, there was a lot of doubt in Italy about Cremonese being able to stay in the league and with how the manager is and the passion he’s got and his work ethic, that’s not what he wants. And I think with how the lads have started it’s been unbelievable. We know it’s a long season but thats the role he’s wanting, to be the underdogs that are overachieving. To be able to be a part of that and prove people wrong and fight for this badge, that was definitely one of the reasons.

You’ve played alongside and under brilliant Italians. Ranieri and Maresca and Cambiasso. If there was one person you leant on for insight and advice on a move to Italy, who was it and what did they have to say to you?

There’s only really one of those I’ve been speaking to for the entire summer and we still keep in touch as much as possible which is Enzo (Maresca). Managed to have a really good chat with him once we knew it was going to be a possibility and he did nothing but sing the praises of the club itself and the surround areas. Cremona as a city and everything. His advice for me was to come here and that was it, once he said that and like I said once I managed to sit down with my family and talk about it, there was only one place I was gonna go.

In terms of your lifestyle now, how is it going to work? Like you said, your kids are far away from where you are. You mentioned technology can help but obviously the kids are back home. How are you going to manage things?

It will just be slightly different until eventually they get to come out here. The good thing is that kids aren’t at school at a weekend so we’ve already been looking at fixtures that especially the boys they want to come out and watch. So it will be things like that and me not getting to see them is not forever its possibly a week at a time. But like you say, FaceTime and stuff like that it works wonders. The kids are still buzzing that I’m saying goodnight everynight and ringing them before I go to training and before they go to school. All in all its absolutely fine and like you say, my wife has been by my side and still here now. We are both missing the kids but its not forever and they’ll be out here soon.

Cremona is the city of the violin. We’re in the violin museum. But I don’t know if you saw but the hashtag StradiVardy has taken off,  How excited are you at the prospect of playing in the same colours as Gianluca Vialli, for whom the term was initially coined?

I did see it, I was getting tagged in it left, right and centre. I really can’t wait. I’m looking forward to the games starting to come thick and fast so I can show people exactly what I’m about and like I said earlier, its about proving the doubters wrong and making sure I’m in with the team and we’re battling for a good 90-95 mins because sometimes thats what it takes. We’ll be giving it all until the end and hopefully that will pick up enough results.

In Italy we are a little bit sceptical about players like you that are approaching their 40th birthday. We tend to say where’s their motivation, how fit are they? What would you say in response to the sceptics?

You must be one of the doubters. You’re one that I’ll have to prove wrong. No, listen, for me age is just a number. As long as, I’ve always said it, my legs are doing exactly what they used to and still feel as fresh as they do then I will carry on and at the moment there are no signs of them slowing down so ill keep going and like I say I will be giving my all for this club.

LEICESTER, ENGLAND – MAY 18: Jamie Vardy of Leicester City gestures a thumbs up as he warms up prior to the Premier League match between Leicester City FC and Ipswich Town FC at The King Power Stadium on May 18, 2025 in Leicester, England. (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images)

What the club president said to you and what your wife said to you after you made the decision?

I managed to have a meeting with Mr Arvedi and for someone so successful I couldn’t believe how humble he actual is and the commitment he’s got personally, not just to the club but to the actual city itself. He was very thoughtful in bringing me a book on Cremona in English that was easier for me to understand but such a nice man and wants the club to be as successful as it can be. We all know the main target is making sure we stay in the league so that then you can probably start to go a bit further. But that’s exactly what he wants and he wants to see the progress that the club itself is making.

As for sitting down with my wife and children, I said what the decision and there was excitement and a buzz for a new challenge that is something completely different to what we have experienced before.

What you make of Cremonese’s first two performances? What has struck you about the two incredible results?

I watched them both while I was still enjoying a bit of time off and the thing that really stood out is how close the lads are together and how they fight for each other. We’re not silly, we know its going to be very difficult. It always is as a promoted team. You find it tough but to get the results they have to start with has been unbelievable. But we all know there is a long way to go so we have got to make sure the standards are that high for every single game that we come into and like I said earlier, hopefully we’ll keep picking those wins up.

We know all about your skills but Italian defences tend to set up differently to what you’re used to. In your role as an attacker, how do you see things from a technical perspective?

Like I touched on earlier we’ve played a similar way under Enzo Maresca and people were saying I wouldn’t be able to adapt to that and I finished that season with 20 goals under him. So you can never be, at 38, too old to learn. You can always learn. So that is what its down to now. Its about me getting the training in with the lads and then when we come to game days its me visualising what opponents do on videos and where I could either exploit them or exploit in a position where it helps one of my teammates out so we end up with the ball in the back of the net.

What do you make of the differences between Premier League and Serie A? Premier League is very physical and high intense, Serie A more tactical, zonal marking. What do you make of building out from the back?

I think that’s just the way football’s gone in general. It was happening all the time in the UK and then it always ventures on. It’s just a part of football and its evolution. You build up from the back to get the keeper involved so it gives you an extra man at that moment in time and then its always finding the spare man if someone does start to press. You’re right, you have to time your press to where you want it to go so you set up in a way that you can force the team one way and thats when you can lock them in and get them in a corner and thats when hopefully you either get the ball back there or they’ve got no other options and its pinged as far up the field as possible and then you regain possession to start your attack.

Jamie Vardy signs his Cremonese contract

About the first two games. Was there a little bit of you that was envious you weren’t on the pitch for that win at San Siro against Milan? Did you congratulate the goal scorers on their finishes as an attacker?

Yeah as a footballer you always want to be involved with games like that but for me personally having that extra time off this summer and being able to relax with my family has helped me out a bit more. Just being able to relax and not having the full-blooded pre-season of double sessions every single days that tire your legs out and struggling to get back fit. On that side it’s benefitted me. Like you say for the goal scorers, you can’t do anything but congratulate them. Getting a winner at the San Siro is probably one of those games where you don’t think you’ll get one but you give your all and anything can happen. I think the lads played absolutely unbelievable, defender for their lives and to pop up with two goals like that.

We’ve all seen the videos of the national team and the terrace chant. The Italian singer Gala, I don’t know if you’ve had the chance to meet her or not or if she’s a football fan?

No I’ve not had the chance to meet her. I’ve always seen those videos. Some of them are very crazy with drinks flying everywhere as well. Nah it’s great to have songs sung about you. It means you are doing something right in your profession. And I’ve obviously been successful enough that I’ve managed to get the songs.

The word ‘goal’ is international – part of the universal language. It conveys the same excitement among the fanbase. It can decide matches and seasons. As a striker you need to work for the team but ultimately your currency is scoring goals. What does it mean for you to score a goal and have you already envisaged your first goal for Cremonese?

As a striker, thats all you ever want to do. You want to help your teammates as much as possible by scoring as many goals as you can. But I’ve always been a firm believer as well that the main thing to come out of any game is to get three points. So if that means me setting up a goal that makes it 1-0 and thats how the game finishes, I’d be as happy as I could be as if I was scoring. As a striker you do everything you can to score. It doesn’t always happen every single game but as long as you’re getting the chances, it shows you are putting yourself in the right position to get on the end of them and give you a chance of scoring.

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