Best wishes, Domenico Morfeo, today marks 50 years: what effect does it have?
“Thank you. I have reached the halfway point of my journey. The next stage is 100 years. We’ll have another big party.”
What path was it?
«A path where I fulfilled myself. I did everything I wanted to do, even if they tell me I could have done more.”
Where and how do you celebrate?
«At Don Alfonso, my restaurant in Parma. We organized a small party.”
How did you celebrate birthdays when you were 10 years old?
«With two or three friends from school who came to my house. And when they had their birthdays, I went to their house. It used to be like this.”
How did Domenico Morfeo spend his childhood?
«I had a peaceful childhood. I left home at 12 because I joined Atalanta’s youth sector. My mother worked as an accountant and my father was a trader of agricultural products. What if I hadn’t been a footballer? I would have gone to work in the fields with my father. I graduated as a surveyor, so I had a qualification.”
Was he good at school?
“Normal. I was a normal student, so to speak.”
How is your relationship with your parents?
«Good, I would say excellent! We look for each other, we talk. We have always lived at a distance. When I can I go to visit them, when they can they go up to Parma.”
What did they think when he started playing football?
«My father tried to give me some advice at first. He had also played football, as had my grandfather. More than anything they told me things for good reasons and within the limits of their knowledge.”
The greatest madness of Domenico Morfeo.
«Once I ran away from college to go to the carnival. I was studying in Bergamo. I returned late at night and, in an attempt to climb over the gate, I was caught by the police. The officers called the priest and I took them. A few other times I ran away from retreats, but that’s another story.”
Do you have any regrets?
«Buildings are built with ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’. Today I can say that if I had been 100% professional perhaps, just perhaps, I would have achieved more.”
Do you feel like apologizing to someone?
“Yes. To those who were disappointed by my behaviors and attitudes in situations in which I wasn’t aware I was making a mistake.”
What is your relationship with money?
«Money is a commodity of exchange. You don’t have to be attached to money. You need them to live well but you don’t have to be obsessed with them.”
And the relationship with his children?
«We have a good relationship. We work together with Leonardo, we share the management of the restaurant in Parma. Despite the separation, the relationship remained excellent.”
Who are his friends?
«They are those people you can count on. For example, if you are stranded overnight or your car fails you at 4 in the morning, you know there are people ready to help you.”
His idol?
«Roberto Baggio».
What is happiness for Morpheus?
«Happiness is being able to have good health. And then being able to do what you want at any moment in life.”
Are you a happy person?
«Yes, because I’m in good health».
The people you miss most today?
«My grandparents».
What would you like to say to Domenico as a boy?
«Very few things. One above all: continue to move forward in this way without compromising and, above all, always have the courage to look people in the face.”
