Radja: We want to make a statement against Chelsea

The midfielder faced the media at Trigoria on Monday afternoon, to answer questions about the game.

JOURNALIST: What would it mean to beat a side like Chelsea – would it make an international statement?

NAINGGOLAN: “Well it would certainly be a major step in qualifying for the knockout stage. We know we can still improve, we can still get better. But we will take things one game at a time.

“If you keep having marginal wins sooner or later you might concede a goal. What is important is that we know what we are working towards. We are doing well defensively, we can still improve going forward but for now we are enjoying the moment and want to keep it going.”

Is this game harder than the away game?

“I don’t know if it will be more or less difficult. We have to take into account they will probably have more players available for this one, and they have been winning their recent games. We have to respect all teams, of course Chelsea are a big team, but we know what we are capable of and our worth. We played a great game in London, we could have won it, but we need to be aware of Chelsea too. We will be playing in front of our own fans, a big crowd, and we have everything it takes to win the game.”

Conte was interested in you, but you are at Roma. Is it harder as the underdog?

“Well I made my choice. I am always focused, I always have been, and fully concentrated on doing my best. I never hesitated or thought for a minute [about leaving], so it doesn’t matter if it’s Chelsea or anyone else. It’s always nice to play against a top team, and like all professionals I know how to prepare for them. I’m ready to give my best and hope to play well.”

Can Roma compete in Serie A?

“Since I’ve been here Roma have always been labelled as a title-challenger. So this time maybe it will be the opposite, we won’t say anything about it and maybe things will turn out different.”

Are Roma stronger now?

“I don’t know. Every year since I’ve been here we’ve had strong teams. This year absolutely, last year too. There is probably more competition, more balance this year. But my impression is every year we have had a competitive team – obviously last year we made some mistakes, which is why we didn’t win any trophies, but we are strong again this year. Let’s see at the end of the campaign - the results will show how strong we really are.”

As a player, do you like the rotation?

“Well a player always wants to play, wants to play every game – otherwise he’s not a footballer. But it is also important to rest and recover, because sometimes other players might be fitter than you. We are rotating at the moment and the results are there to see.”