REVERSE FIXTURE
“Sadly our ten consecutive wins in a row came to an end due to some
refereeing mistakes: I remember there was a foul on Benatia in the
build-up to their goal and a penalty not given to Pjanic. Everyone makes
mistakes though, it’s normal and it can happen. What mattered in the
reverse fixture was playing well. That game is now way behind us and
it’s only tomorrow’s that counts: we want to keep moving forward.”
ABSENTEES
“Maicon only spent part of the session with the squad this morning: his
knee still hurts, we’ve got another 24 hours to assess him – although
it’s nothing serious – his complaint is just related to pain. I hope
it’s all subsided come tomorrow morning. Benatia’s ban? Toloi will come
in for him.”
PALLOTTA
“The president arrived this morning but he has a very important date in
his diary with the stadium presentation. We haven’t yet earmarked a
time to discuss my future. All I care about is tomorrow’s match and I’m
focused on Torino.”
COMPARISONS
“Last night’s El Clasico was top quality and a great advertisement for
football in general, although there were a number of cards and one team
ended the game with 10 men. Here in Italy we also have great teams that
are always competing at the top. We only have two automatic qualifiers
into the Champions League and one spot for the qualifiers: our league is
very tough. La Liga is very interesting for the fans because the title
race is still open, while it’s boring when a team wins the league with
two months to spare. The strength of a league depends on the clubs’
economic power and their ability to buy players. It’s great for Serie A
when talents like Higuain and Tevez come in. You need to have the chance
to create great teams and make the league more open.”
ATTACK
“The way you play always depends on the players on the field and those
available in your squad. When Mattia and Francesco are out there, it’s
not like it is when Florenzi and Llajic play, who often change
positions. Who we can pick from in midfield has a big impact on this and
we currently have a number of players missing in there. I’m still very
happy with my midfield, even without Strootman and De Rossi. We’ve done
very well. We’ll keep going with our own play. Second place is not sewn
up yet, we mustn’t let up: we have to do everything to win at home
tomorrow.”
DESTRO
“Mattia is a natural born goalscorer. If you compare him to players who
have won a lot in big clubs, you see there’s a difference in terms of
maturity. We need to give Mattia time to improve. Lest we forget he was
out for at least seven months and he still needs to work to rediscover
his best form. His numbers aren’t bad at all for the moment and he needs
to keep going.”
CHANGES
“I weigh up how much to tinker with my side from game to game. It
depends on my players’ fitness. Gervinho for instance is a unique player
on our roster and he’s currently showing that he’s healthy game after
game. We still have a number of matches to play and will need to analyze
every player individually to pick the best side.”
LEADERS
“What separates us from Juventus? They’re having a record-breaking
season, but so are we: all we can do is win and see what happens come
the end of the season. Next season is still a long way off and it’s too
early to discuss it. There’s one thing we need to keep our eyes on: the
standings. I just want to keep going forward. My team has 64 points and I
just want our total to be 67 come the end of the Torino match.”
NAPOLI
“What difference is there with our rivals? I just want to finish
second, even with a few injured players. I don’t tend to talk about
other teams. I’m happy with my roster, this season and happy to be here.
We’ll do everything we can to stay second. I think our only reasonable
goal should be to retain second spot between now and the end of the
season.”
TEAM SELECTION
“Daniele has trained very well, let’s hope there’s no problem settling
back in after his time out of the team. There’s no hierarchy here,
Florenzi and Bastos came on in the last two games because they’re more
defensive than Ljajic. I made this decision based on what sort of
players I have. I like to have a choice during matches. Now we have
fewer players on the treatment table and that’s good news in light of
the run of games we have coming up.”
Source: asroma.it