PRESS ROOM | Fabio Pisacane after the match

These are the words of Fabio Pisacane, Cagliari coach, after the 0-2 home defeat against Udinese at the Unipol Domus.

REGRET FOR THE RESULT
“It’s disappointing, because when you take 23 shots on goal and don’t score, there are two possibilities: either it’s a bad day or we weren’t very precise. We need to regroup, get over today’s match, work hard, and still bring home a good performance. Today, Cagliari played well for a good 70 minutes. If you don’t score, it’s clear you risk paying for your lack of precision. We could have even conceded a third goal: there are days when you produce a lot but don’t capitalize. It’s truly disappointing.”

THE TEAM’S PERFORMANCE
“In my opinion, we played an important match against a team with great physicality and quality like Udinese. They have a strong engine, like almost all Serie A teams. However, we saw that Cagliari has a methodology, knowledge, and content that they have built over the months, from July 10th until today.
We started the season one way, then we changed, increasing our structure in possession. There are players who have grown enormously during this process: I look at Adopo, for example, and I see a player who has added new elements to his game. The team played on par with Udinese today, who came here with desire and a high tempo, as their final celebration also demonstrated.
In football, however, the winner is always right, and we must carefully analyze our mistakes to avoid repeating them.”

DECISIVE MISTAKES
“Dispiace perché una lettura errata ci ha traditi e in Serie A non puoi permetterti di sbagliare contro squadre con questa fisicità e qualità. Non siamo stati precisi sotto porta pur avendo tirato molto più dell’Udinese. Loro fanno nove tiri, sei in porta, e segnano due gol sfiorando anche il terzo. Noi ne facciamo oltre venti e non riusciamo a segnare. Questo significa che dobbiamo migliorare, senza dubbio”.

MENDY AND ESPOSITO
Today we had Mendy on the pitch for a hundred minutes. He sacrificed himself immensely, he was the attacking terminal and fought for every ball. We’ve lacked this kind of work at certain points this season, especially when we lost Borrelli and Belotti. Esposito has important qualities. Sometimes he should tame the ball more, waiting for the right play, because that way he could find the back of the net more easily. But he’s doing what I ask of him with and without the ball; he’s dynamic, he comes between the lines, and he’s improved a lot over time. The goals will come for him too. He wasn’t lucky against the post in the second half.

PRESSURE AND ATTITUDE
“I don’t think the pressure had any impact today. We always feel pressure, because we know our goal. Today we played very well in the three-quarters of the pitch; I saw some great moves and good ideas. But then there’s the post, the centimeter that’s missing, the clearing on the line, or the goalkeeper’s save.
Toward the end, we tried to put a little more pressure up front, even in a more disorganized way. I don’t particularly like that because you have to be careful not to disrupt the order that the team has maintained almost throughout the match.”

THE RACE TO SURVIVAL
“Let’s not do any calculations. There are two games left, and we must focus only on improving and getting points, without looking too far away. We were built to stay up, and throughout the season we lost some key players every week, but we never gave up. Even during winless periods, both in the first and second legs, the team always remained focused. The first to be disappointed today are the lads, because they deserved more, but they also know that football at this level is like that.”

WORKING ON YOUNG PLAYERS
“I think we should give credit to this team and this club for the work they’ve done on their young players. Mendy played 100 minutes today, and tomorrow he won’t even be able to join the Primavera team for an important match. We’ve helped many young players develop, bringing in new skills and knowledge over time. Personally, I always try to look on the bright side, and I’m still doing that today.”

THE EPISODES
I had a very confused perception of the alleged racist incident on the bench, because I was far away. But I’ve known Alberto Dossena for years, I know his values, and it doesn’t even cross my mind that he would have said such things. I believe in the man, and I’m sorry that all that fuss was created after the game. I spoke with Alberto about Dossena and Davis, and I believe him, because I know him well. There were some bumps, things on the pitch, and I have complete trust in my player. The revoked penalty? During the season, I’ve only spoken about the referees once, going against my usual practice. Today, I’m going back to my initial thoughts and prefer not to comment on the incident.