Lazio head coach Maurizio Sarri previewed Wednesday’s Coppa Italia final against Inter Milan while tackling several topics.
Maurizio Sarri Opens Up on Lazio vs Inter Milan
The 67-year-old had previously described this campaign as the most challenging of his managerial career due to the surrounding circumstances, but he still managed to guide the team to the cup final. On Wednesday, the Biancocelesti will have the opportunity to earn silverware and qualify for the Europa League, but the new Italian champions are standing in their way.
Will Danilo Cataldi Be Available for Coppa Italia Final
On Tuesday, Sarri held his pre-match press conference alongside club captain Mattia Zaccagni (via La Lazio Siamo Noi). The Tuscan manager began by providing an update on Danilo Cataldi, who is clinically cleared but has yet to regain his optimal physical condition.
Danilo had his first training session this morning. Medical condition is one thing, physical sharpness is another. Over the last month he’s basically never trained.
Lazio Need a Better Performance that Saturday’s
10-man Lazio fell short to Inter Milan in Saturday’s dress rehearsal, suffering a 0-3 defeat. Sarri rued the team’s poor performance, which sparked a few selection doubts in his mind ahead of the final.
After Saturday’s match, I’ve got eight or nine doubts. We were so poor collectively that there’s no point even looking at individual performances. We didn’t press, it was a f*****g awful performance. When you play this often, you can’t really have the kind of training sessions that give you many indications. To be honest, the team had trained well last week too, but then they completely fell apart in the match. I hope Saturday was only the result of something mental. Tomorrow I hope we’ll be different in every aspect.
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Sarri Proud of Lazio Achievements
Aside from Saturday’s disappointing result, Sarri remains immensely proud of Lazio’s path this season, especially given the difficult circumstances.
I’m proud of the season, especially of the team’s attitude. Yes, we got some matches wrong, but we never gave up. The players made me enjoy the training sessions. For me, tomorrow’s match has extra motivation because I want the players to win. They deserve it. We knocked out teams of an extremely high level. The squad crossed the desert without water. That’s a source of satisfaction. We’re different compared to the start of the season, we’re better. Maybe we’re not great as a coach and as players, but as men we’re happy with what we’ve done.
Sarri Still Has Chelsea Regrets
When asked what winning a trophy with Lazio would mean to him, Sarri looked back on the Carabao Cup he lost during his solitary campaign at Chelsea (2018/19), which continues to haunt him.
I’ve already lost two domestic cup finals, in Italy (with Juventus in 2020) and especially in England on the seventh penalty against Manchester City. We had done a bit more in that match, and that’s a huge regret. This trophy should be for the players and the fans. We want to give them something to celebrate. For them too, not being able to come to the stadium has been difficult. I feel I already have a long career behind me, so it wouldn’t change my life. But it would be beautiful to give joy to the players and the supporters.
Sarri Ran Out of Words
The former Napoli coach insisted that words and tactical instructions will become meaningless in the final stages of the preparations, and it will be up to the players to showcase the right attitude.
After lunch I sat down to prepare tonight’s team meeting, and I struggled to find the right words. Anything I say sounds cliché. It’s obvious the match is important, it’s obvious it’s difficult. We need to forget Saturday’s game; after that, every word becomes unnecessary. You need belief. You need to believe in it to the point of madness. If the mental attitude is the same as Saturday’s, tactics mean nothing. If we have the mentality but don’t attack spaces, then it’s useless anyway. We’ve prepared something different for tomorrow.
Can Pedro Make the Difference Once More?
Sarri believes Pedro can be Lazio’s ace up the hole based on his exploits in cup finals, but only if he overcomes his physical struggles.
Pedro had some physical issues until this morning. He trained today and I think he’ll be available tomorrow. Usually he’s a specialist in these kinds of matches. He’s scored in 80% of the finals he’s played in. He manages to bring everything out of himself, and hopefully he’ll do it again tomorrow, even though he came out of Saturday’s game a bit battered.
Lazio Fans Will Show up for Coppa Italia Final
Finally, the Lazio boss is delighted to have the fans back in the stands to support his team.
Definitely. Going out for the warm-up lately has been depressing. The fans coming back can help the team from that point of view. I don’t know how many points it cost us not having fans in the stadium, but it definitely cost us something. So yes, the supporters can help us in that sense.
