PRESS ROOM | Coach Pisacane before Cagliari-Napoli

Rossoblù coach Fabio Pisacane presented the match against Napoli in a press conference, the first match of the 30th matchday of the Serie A championship scheduled for Friday the 20th.

START RIGHT BACK
“Right away, both I and the team realized we hadn’t delivered a performance up to par: we played poorly in every way, and we missed a crucial opportunity. We feel a lot of confidence in us from everyone, especially our fans. That’s also why we’re deeply disappointed about what happened in Pisa.”

DESIRE FOR REDEMPTION
“We’ve only had a few days to prepare for this match, but we’re coming off a very poor performance. I imagine the lads are desperate for redemption and can’t wait to get on the pitch. It’s no coincidence that they were the ones who asked me to start their training camp a day early: they sensed the moment, they understood that only by sticking together, united, can we improve. Napoli is a big team in our league, fighting for the top spots. And we know full well that this isn’t a game like any other.”

THE MATCH AGAINST NAPOLI
Napoli has a vast squad, filled with champions: even without some of their top players, they’ve picked up points and secured victories. Regardless of who plays, our attitude can have a significant impact on the outcome of the match, as it did against Roma, Juventus, or Napoli itself, both in the league first leg—when we lost the match in the final fifteen seconds—and in the Coppa Italia, where we went to penalties. In all those occasions, we displayed anger, competitive spirit, and qualities that weren’t seen in Pisa. However, our recent matches against Napoli have shown that against a team like that, you can’t afford even the slightest lapse in concentration; they’re quick to capitalize.

CHOICES AND STRATEGY
“With the exception of Belotti, Felici, and, obviously, Idrissi, we’ve recovered almost everyone. Only Borrelli is missing, who is continuing his personalized training; Liteta took a knock to his ankle, which will be evaluated. Deiola put in an extra week of training, as did Mazzitelli. Alessandro is coming off a very long layoff, about three months. His starting role? It’s one of those questions I’ll keep until the very end. Gaetano is a player who allows you to create patterns, especially under pressure: I didn’t mind him in certain situations at Pisa, but he could have done better in others, but let’s not forget that he was also returning after several games. Who will play on the left? Rodriguez can play that position, but it depends on the structure we apply in both non-possession and possession phases. Palestra has already played that role in the past, including at Atalanta: it’s no coincidence that he was chosen for his versatility; he can play on both flanks.”

THE RIGHT MENTALITY
“Is there a problem with our approach to matches? Games last a hundred minutes; it’s not just a question of what you do in the first fifteen minutes. This team has conceded eleven goals in four games against Genoa and Pisa, both home and away. At the same time, they’ve kept six clean sheets, including four against Juventus, Roma, Como, and Lazio. These guys, despite the numerous absences that have plagued our season, have never found excuses, have never felt sorry for themselves: they’ve always remained true to their principles, sacrificing themselves for each other, and always fighting.”

THE PLAYERS
Esposito? He’s important to us, his absence in Pisa was felt: he’s a modern player, he has a great spirit of sacrifice, even when he’s not asked to, he’s always ready to make that extra run to help his teammate. He’s a technician, tactically he can offer you many solutions, more than the ones we give him, he’s the one who tries to find the right position on the pitch based on the game and his moments. Semih? He’s observing Ramadan, this may have affected his performances. We need to balance the energies in the squad. Folorunsho felt discomfort in his knee in Pisa where he had suffered his last injury, at the same time Adopo was also down after a knock to the thigh. At half-time I brought Adopo off, Folo said he was available to stay on the pitch, we wanted to try to fill the penalty area – which in the end we didn’t manage – also thanks to his physicality. He felt guilty about the second goal, even if it was actually a general error. He didn’t want to abandon the team at that moment, even if Sometimes a pinch of healthy selfishness can be more beneficial for everyone. This week he trained regularly.”