Marco Palestra is among the key players for Cagliari, who will be able to celebrate survival on Saturday with a positive result against Udinese . "It will be one of the best moments of my life, I say this even though I still have everything ahead of me," said the full-back, on loan from Atalanta, in an interview for Dazn's "My Skills." "Here, I immediately felt supported by the fans, I made so many friends in the locker room, and the city is a wonderful place to be. I think it was the right choice in every way: in Cagliari, you feel welcomed, by all of Sardinia; it's a unique team. When I was choosing, my former Atalanta teammates told me I wouldn't regret it: now I can say I did the right thing."

Palestra arrived in Cagliari at the end of August, making his debut immediately in the away match against Naples and impressing everyone with his skills. "It's been a wonderful year, it's changed my life: I'm so happy," he said. He added that he didn't expect to establish himself so much: "I never would have thought about it at the start of the season. Let's see if I can maintain my form in the coming years. I feel ready, but this whole year has given me more confidence with every match. Anyone who plays football must have the ambition to become a top player."

After the last three matchdays, Palestra will return to Atalanta: the Bergamo club had loaned him out, with no option to buy, and will presumably make a record transfer in the next transfer window or one of the following ones. "I've been with Atalanta since I was a kid, and they gave me some wonderful years. I can certainly only say good things about them." He also received a call-up to the national team from Cagliari, albeit in a less than favorable situation, having lost the playoffs to Bosnia (where Palestra was among the few to survive). "We need to start over; we'll do even better because you learn a lot from these tough defeats. I hope to continue with the national team for years and years: it's everyone's dream, but it depends on what I do now with Cagliari and where I will be in the future ."