Emanuele Giaccherini has declared that he hopes to use his Sunderland move to nail down a starting spot for Italy at next summer's World Cup.
Giaccherini put pen to paper on a four-year contract with the Black Cats today, completing a switch from Juventus for a fee believed to be in the region of £8.5m.
The Azzurri winger admits that he will need to rely heavily on the influence of Sunderland boss Paolo Di Canio early on, primarily to help him cope with the language barrier created by a move to England.
He told Sky Italia: "I am full of enthusiasm and want to do good things as part of this adventure. I want to thank [Juventus] coach Antonio Conte. In the last two years he has given me the possibility to shine and make a name for myself here.
"A big part of my success is down to him. I thank him for that and will do so personally in the next few days. I have got into the national team now and I want to stay there. I will do everything for that. I hope this new adventure can push me to the World Cup.
"I will do my best playing in the English championship, which is the best in the world. Yesterday I spoke with Paolo Di Canio. For me, due to the fact that I don't know the language, he will be a fundamental reference point, especially on the field."
The 28-year-old has played 14 times for his country, with the last of those appearances coming for Cesare Prandelli's side at the Confederations Cup.
Liam Power
