PRESS ROOM | Pisacane after the victory in Turin

These are the words of Fabio Pisacane, Cagliari coach, after the 2-1 victory at Torino. The coach’s analysis with the media inside the Olimpico Grande Torino stadium.

THE MATCH
We’re very happy with an important victory on a difficult pitch, after a difficult week that makes this result even more significant. The best thing was the way we reacted to the deficit; after starting well, the match could have been a blow. We were facing a strong, well-coached Torino team, who also brought in top-level players in the second half, and we were up to the task. I like to look at the performances of several players who haven’t played much so far, I’m thinking of Kilicsoy and Mazzitelli, proof of how we have a solid group made up of players who are always ready. Luca is doing well; I’d already said he was ready to give us a hand, then when his moment could have arrived he stopped again, but without a doubt he has the quality and experience that are right for us. Today is a small building block on a long journey; we’re taking many positive notes, but we can’t overlook some things that didn’t work and need improvement, such as the management of some transitions against a Torino team that we knew would cause us problems. At times we were left defenseless, just as we could have managed some situations better towards the end. situations”.

SOLID TEAM
“I had some opportunities up front today. In some areas, there was more choice, and in others, less due to the absences. But I never give up and work with what the moment offers, given that injuries can sometimes reduce the squad. I’m happy because the team once again shows they never give up, they’re on the ball, even after a difficult week and a game where we dropped two points at home in the dying seconds. I’m happy because the group is carrying forward an idea they’ve built over months, their own identity. This is what makes a coach most rewarding.”

WORK EVEN IN DIFFICULTIES
“When everything seems to be going wrong, I think we just have to work, without getting discouraged by the difficulties that a long season throws at you, like so many injuries. Kilicsoy’s goal? Aside from the goal, which is important but not the only thing to look at, Semih tied the game together, helped the team, worked with the others, and certainly has some top-notch shots in tight spaces. As a coach, I have to analyze everything as a whole, and that’s perhaps why he wasn’t called upon consistently in recent weeks. Today, Semih is able to fit into our system, bringing added value, and we’re happy about that.”

NO EXALTATION
Since the beginning of the season, I promised myself I wouldn’t comment on refereeing incidents, and today I’m doing the same (referring to the early-match incident involving contact between Paleari and Idrissi, ed.). The only thing that bothered me was the lack of willingness to cooperate throughout the ninety minutes; that’s all I can say about match refereeing. I’m focusing on what the team is doing, the compliments they receive every week, and on the journey, which is still very long because the lads know that in football everything can change for the better or for the worse from one game to the next. Today we’re enjoying our fourth win of the season, the second away from home in 17 matches, but from tomorrow onwards we’ll focus immediately on AC Milan.

THE ABSENCES
“I don’t like excuses; they’re the recipe for explaining when you lose, and they don’t apply to me. If we’d lost, I certainly wouldn’t have called out the absentees. I prefer to focus on my work, on the performance of the players, myself, and the staff. Esposito out? A normal technical decision, because he’d almost always started, even against Pisa, after a week where he hadn’t worked at his best. Today we managed his playing time, but there was also a technical decision behind his starting from the bench. Idrissi? Riyad is growing, I know him well. He shouldn’t get too excited, but look ahead. Like the other players, he’s part of the group and has important qualities that he needs to hone.”

SEMIH’S SECOND CONSECUTIVE GOAL
“What he does on the pitch, especially in training, is a real circus. The pitch is huge, and he has enormous quality, but he’s coming from a Turkish game, where he played for a great team that had 80% possession of the ball and therefore played differently. He had trouble adapting, but that’s normal when you’re talking about a very young player making his first experience in Italy. We’re very happy for him; we know how much he’s been waiting for this moment and how hard he’s worked with his teammates. He deserves this satisfaction, just like last week.”

PALESTRA PROTAGONIST IN CAGLIARI
“He’s an asset to Italian football. He’s got pace, he can use both feet with ease, and I was immediately struck by his personality with the ball, even when he was in the Primavera. It’s striking that you never know which direction he’ll go when he runs at you, he crosses with his right and left foot, and he’s hungry to improve. He can certainly improve, and for his own good, we need to point out to him what’s not going right, as in the last two games, for example, he hasn’t been fully satisfied in either phase. I wasn’t afraid to start him straight away, I’m not afraid of losing him, and I won’t get involved in other dynamics that aren’t my responsibility. I hope he can stay at Cagliari at least until June, but I won’t talk about the transfer market, especially now, hot off the press and after a win. These are considerations that can be made elsewhere; the club is attentive to every situation, and we all work together to make the decisions that are best for us.”