Coach Ranieri before Inter-Cagliari

Coach Claudio Ranieri presented the match of the ‘Giuseppe Meazza’ stadium against Inter from the press room of the CRAI Sport Center.

THE MEMORY OF THE SCUDETTO
“I would like to go back to that magnificent moment 54 years ago, when Cagliari won the Scudetto. It was a wonderful thing, for the island, for everyone. Everyone felt involved, participated, it was a wonderful celebration. Thanks again to all those champions, they brought so much brotherhood and enthusiasm to Sardinia. There is no more Riva, it is the first anniversary of the Scudetto without him: to honour his memory in the best possible way, we will have to achieve salvation”.

AGAINST THE LEADERS
“The victory against Atalanta, whom I congratulate on the feat at ‘Anfield’ against Liverpool, is already archived: we lived this week with the right balance and I hope that now my players will bring it on the pitch. We’re going to face the probable new champions of Italy: Inter have no weaknesses, they’re a perfect machine that only got out of the Champions League because of some unfortunate episodes. We will go to play our game without fear, with personality and desire to do well in front of a full and charged stadium. We have to play a perfect game, beyond the system of play and the players who will take the field: we have to overcome and help each other”.

ON THE FIRST LEG
“In the first leg it was a very difficult match, they won deservedly. We had done all we could, with some elements that still had to fit in, but they, despite being the second of the championship, showed the same technical and tactical skills that led them to be the leaders”.

RIGHT SPIRIT
“We have to continue with this mentality. We will fight because that is what I always ask of the team. This way we keep our concentration high and this will be fundamental in the final rush to be able to achieve salvation. There is still a long way to go until the end of the championship, we haven’t done anything yet and we will have to suffer and fight.”

THE GROUP
“I consider myself very lucky because I have a group that always trains to the maximum during the week, I have a full squad that allows me to change during the match: with the five changes this becomes more and more important. On individuals? Petagna works on a personalised basis, as does Pavoletti. Lapadula, he plays, trains and continues treatment for that small problem with his patellar tendon”.