The first episode of Udinese Tonight of 2025 featured our current first-choice stopper, Razvan Savan. The Romanian goalkeeper was interviewed and spoke about a wide range of topics, such as our last game against Verona, his career beginnings and performances for the Zebrette so far:
“We headed home after the away game in Verona feeling disappointed for not having got three points which we really needed. However, we’re already on 25 points, which is good, especially when compared to last season. We’ll take solace in that. We had so many fans in Verona - almost 2,000 – and they created a great atmosphere. To me, they seemed louder than the home fans.
“My first footballing experience in Italy was with Pro Sesto. I went to Pordenone with the Romanian U-15 national team, and at the time I was just playing for my school team. I was spotted and offered a chance to play there. It was hard at first to bed in because I couldn’t speak Italian. I then went on to learn some English as well as Italian. I made two appearances for Pro Sesto aged 15 in Serie D. I then moved on to Juventus, and when I found out that they wanted me I couldn’t believe it. I visited the training ground, I spoke with the director and with the coaches - it felt like I was in a dream. I then moved on to Torino Primavera. After that experience I wanted to stay in Italy, but I didn’t find a team that could showcase my qualities and I decided to start again in Romania, accepting an offer from [CFR] Cluj. That’s where I really kicked on. I also crossed paths with [Simone] Scuffet – we still have a good relationship today. At the beginning of the summer I got a call from Udinese. I was aware that they were tracking me and I didn’t hesitate to accept the club’s offer.
“I feel sorry for [Maduka] Okoye. It’s not how I wanted to debut with the club – I would’ve preferred to have got a place in the team on my own merit. I hope that I’ve shown my qualities so far. I felt calm on my debut – at the end of the day football is a game and I try and have fun and not let the pressure get to me. It was love at first sight between me and Udinese. I'm happy to have earned the trust of the coach and the fans".
"As for my strengths, everything! [laughs, ed.]. Maybe my weakness is getting things moving from the back – I’ve come from a league which is played at a slower pace so I’m not used to how it is here. Balls fly in really quickly from corner kicks, like was the case against Torino, and I could’ve done better. I was ready for the Verona game, however. I always rewatch games to learn and to feel the emotions I felt on the pitch. I also watched the pass against Fiorentina - I asked myself what was going through my head. Luckily the fact that we won allowed me to sleep at night. I feel good playing with my feet. In Romania I didn't play like that, so this season I started to get involved in build-up play more and I was able to quickly adapt. I actually played as a defender when I was younger.
“My favourite save that I’ve made so far is the one from [Frank] Anguissa’s effort for Napoli, but the ones from [Samuele] Ricci and [Milan] Djuric were also good. I’ve got a good bond with my team-mates in defence. [Oumar] Solet played well against Verona and made me feel at ease.
“As for my idols, there are many goalkeepers who inspire me. When I was younger I looked up to everyone, such as [Jan] Oblak, [Gianluigi] Donnarumma and [Gianluigi] Buffon. I think the current best goalkeeper is [Thibaut] Courtois.
“I’m really happy in Udine – I love the city. I’ve settled in Italy and even have an Italian girlfriend. I love Italian cuisine - I've already eaten frico here and I liked it.
“We’re taking things game by game and like any club we want to qualify to Europe. We’re always trying to do our best and to take Udinese as far as the club can go.”