Askildsen: “Pleased for myself and happy with our league standing”

Kristoffer Askildsen may only be 19 years of age, but he’s already showing plenty of maturity on and off the pitch at Sampdoria.

“I’m pleased to be getting more playing time and minutes, but the main thing is that the team picked up three points – that’s the most important thing,” said the Norwegian after the 3-0 win over SPAL on Sunday evening.

“We need points,” he continued. “So we’ll continue to do everything we can to pick up as many as possible seeing as we can still improve our league position.”

The introduction of five substitutes per game has provided more opportunities for young players like Askildsen, who played for half an hour as Doria made it two wins from two at Marassi.

“I feel great here,” he said. “I like it in Genoa – it’s really nice. I have an excellent relationship with [Claudio] Ranieri – he’s a great coach. He speaks a lot during the games and is always giving us good advice.”