As a team, we've started well this year.
I'm happy on a personal level too
as I'm playing better than I did last year.
As I've said before,
last year was about getting to grips
with Italian football for me.
I understand it better now
and I'm more familiar with Giampaolo's way of playing.
It's going better for me this year
and I want to keep it up.
The coach thinks I play best as an inside forward.
I think I understand the positions
and the coach's brand of football better this year,
and that goes for the inside forward position too.
I still think I can do well as a trequartista
because that's where I've always played,
but the coach wants me to play at inside forward
at the moment so I do my best.
I want to get more assists and goals
and be more important to the team.
I can do well as an inside forward.
I started playing football when I was five years old.
I was very young – my dad encouraged me to play.
Back then I also played tennis.
When I was ten, I had to decide between tennis and football
and chose football.
I joined Genk, which is an hour away from home,
at the age of ten.
I went to school there too.
After Genk I joined Anderlecht,
where I spent five years before signing for Sampdoria.
Sampdoria weren't the only club interested in signing me,
but I felt really good about it after I met the president.
He has a very close relationship with the players,
whereas at Anderlecht there was a massive distance
between the directors and the team.
It's like a family here at Sampdoria.
Everyone is really close and I love that.
Samp is a really friendly club so
it was the perfect place for me.
I'm interested in fashion.
Around four years ago,
I set up a brand with my friend Yannick Nulens,
who I played with at Genk.
It's called DYJCODE.
We do it with another friend called Joey,
so that's why it has DYJ at the start.
We're all mates.
As I said, I like fashion and I like being creative.
We use a lot of black and white for the brand
– it's kind of streetwear.
When I joined Sampdoria,
we decided to make some t-shirts featuring Italian slogans
and words.
This is one of them!
It says "BUONGIORNO" and "ARRIVEDERCI" in Italian.
We've made a few more too.
I think people in Belgium like the link with me and Italy.
I live in Pieve Ligure,
five minutes from Bogliasco.
It's nice and close for training.
I'm very happy here. It's a beautiful region.
I live with my girlfriend Sharon and my dog Scotch.
He's three years old.
He's really important to me,
especially when my girlfriend is back home
as he usually stays with me.
He always wants to play around with a ball, a bit like me!
I really like the city of Genoa,
though I do find it a bit chaotic.
I prefer smaller, quieter towns such as Camogli,
which I really like.
Portofino is nice too.
I also visited Finale Ligure,
I also visited Finale Ligure, where there is a lovely beach.
I really like the sea.
I think it was my father that gave me that love for the sea.
There is a seaside in Belgium,
but it's a two hours' drive away
and it's not like it is here in Italy.
As I say, I like going out on the water in canoes or boats.
It's really important for me to have a sea view.
I absolutely love Italian food.
I could eat pasta every day – all kinds of pasta.
My favourite is carbonara,
but I love arrabbiata, bolognese, vongole and the rest too.
I miss Belgian frites a bit,
but as players we shouldn't eat too
many anyway so it's not an issue.
When my parents visit,
they come and see every home game in Genoa.
We go out to eat in restaurants in Bogliasco, Recco, Camogli…
We eat pasta or fish or something like that.
I use social media a lot as well,
my favourite is Instagram.
I think it's a great way of keeping in touch with the fans
and you can advertise things if you want to,
like me with my clothing line.
It's easy to use social networks for this.
I'm on Twitter and Facebook as well,
but Instagram is the one I use the most.
I think the Sampdoria fans are amazing
because they're always positive
and this is really important for the team.
They don't put us under too much pressure,
so we can play freely.
Home games at our stadium are amazing:
they chant and support us for the whole match.
This is really good for us.
Breaking into the senior national team
is definitely an objective of mine.
I don't think I played that well last season,
so I understand why I didn't get a call-up
because the Belgium squad is so strong right at the moment.
All the players play their trade in England, Spain and Italy,
like Radja Nainggolan or Dries Mertens.
It's very hard to get into the squad,
but after a good campaign for Sampdoria –
and we're playing pretty well currently –
I hope to get a call-up
because I definitely want to play for my country.
It won't be easy, though, and I'll need to be on top form.
I always want to be a leader on the pitch;
I'm not the kind who talks all the time,
but I prefer to let my feet do the leading
and be at the heart of the action when we get the ball.
That's the kind of leader I want to be in this team.
We've got a strong squad.
I think we're better than last season
because we've had a year to take on board
how Giampaolo wants to play.
Now you can see more of our style on the pitch,
so I think we just need to believe in ourselves
and continue as we're doing.
If it's possible, I definitely want to get into Europe,
but we're playing in Serie A
and we're up against many strong sides,
so it's no easy task.
Nevertheless, I think we've got an excellent team
and a united squad that gives everything for one another.
With the support of our amazing fans,
I think we can have a great season.
Forza Sampdoria!
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