“Being here with Bologna is a great emotion for me and for the whole group except De Silvestri and Freuler. We know who we face but we want to play a great match.” On the eve of the prestigious Champions League match against Liverpool, all the emotion of Vincenzo Italiano appears. After the draw on their debut against Shakhtar Donetsk, the Anfield test arrives for the rossoblù. Here are the full statements from the protagonists at the press conference on the eve.
The words of Italian
“A new path has begun for us. I believe that this journey to the Champions League can also leave us with a lot because it will be an experience that will make everyone grow, myself, the boys and the management. We are a team that is currently starting a path of growth important, after having overcome the month of September with some results that have given us morale. We are a team of many young people and some quality expert players. We are here to play our cards trying to put a team that is traveling well Our goal is to leave here with our heads held high, trying to bring with us something that will help us for the future, knowing that we have a good chance of trying to put Liverpool in difficulty.”
The first trip to Europe on an exceptional stage has arrived. Are you afraid that your players might suffer from emotion? How is Castro?
“We talked about it a lot with the boys: leaving here with so many regrets cannot be our goal. We will have to try to respect our opponents while putting character and personality on the field. We will try to propose what we have done in recent months, willingly to grow and perform well. Then we also have to think about the Champions League standings because with this new format it is as if we are facing a new championship. Castro is fine, he just suffered a bad blow to his calf disposed of”
How many changes have you thought about compared to the match against Atalanta?
“We have recovered and we are all well. We are thinking about tomorrow’s match but this week we cannot help but also think about the championship match on Sunday. They are two too important matches for us, before the break. We have to make a great effort: we have some doubts, Tomorrow we will decide.”
Throughout his career he has always played courageous and attacking football. Considering tomorrow’s opponent, however, have you also thought of something different? Could tomorrow night’s match also be a test for next season?
“From this point of view I believe that the match against Atalanta gave great signals: we knew how to suffer, lower our center of gravity, defend ourselves well. This team has what you saw with Atalanta in its core when in difficulty. Our goal is not to be crushed, but we know that sometimes the skill and strength of the opponent forces you to sacrifice yourself. These guys know how to do it in football today where everyone dribbles and has the ability to create from deep if you lose a man the game becomes very difficult. I hope that tomorrow we won’t have to suffer like this, but together with the boys we want to leave here with many positive ideas.”
Arne Slot said he feared Bologna’s man-versus-man marking game. Mac Allister, on the other hand, said he had never seen a Bologna match… Could it be an advantage for you to exploit this surprise effect?
“I don’t know. Unlike them, we have seen many images, both with the staff and with the boys. We saw the match against Milan and what they are capable of, we know the champions who are in the squad… Our surprise factor there isn’t. We have to take the field with respect but not that respect that makes you shy and doesn’t allow you to complete two consecutive passes. We want to be an opponent who knows how to counter.”
Genoa, Udinese, Fiorentina and Atalanta have won at Anfield… Statistics say that you can also win here
“On the pitch we play 11 against 11 and the fans are behind the lines of the pitch. The biggest fear is for the great players who take to the pitch. For the rest, I know that the boys only concentrate on what’s on the pitch, trying to do the best despite not having had many training sessions to prepare her, but we will have to get used to this. This is not an alibi, but I underline it because it is an aspect to grow on.”
Do you like this new Champions League format? How have you seen Orsolini this week?
“I was born with this new Champions League. I think this format is very interesting, it’s very nice to see this enormous ranking which gives so much motivation. We have the chance to play more chances and in my opinion it was a good idea to change it in this way. Orsolini I see better: with Atalanta I saw him more present and I liked it. Then with the inferiority we had to make different decisions, I spoke with the boys and we will rotate it among the most representative, the most experts and who best represent the group. Everyone must know that they are important to this group.”
Bologna is a team made up of veterans and young people. Do you see the latter as ready for the Champions League?
“The young boys express themselves as mature players. I think of Urbanski, Castro, Fabbian who have remarkable intelligence and are surprising me a lot. I am convinced that this match and this stage will give the boys many ideas to try to do even better. I have I gave an example to the boys: when I trained with the first team and then went down with the Primavera, I felt the difference and the responsibility when I returned with my teammates. Tomorrow we have to bring home many new ideas from here, we have to learn a lot for the future “.
More Fabbian or more Urbanski on the pitch tomorrow?
“I always carry around some doubts that I reflect on at night, then at breakfast and at snack time the next day. This has been the case since I’ve been doing this job: I want to experience situations first-hand. I look at how the kids present themselves at breakfast, if they’re concentrated. .. These are the sensations I base myself on.”
Skorupski’s words
“How do you stop strong attacks like Liverpool’s? I think that during the week we always need to work hard, this is the only way. We have to follow our staff who give us a great hand: this is the only way.”
Have you heard from Allison? What relationship do you have?
“We haven’t spoken but we will certainly say goodbye tomorrow. We spent a good year together in Rome. I hope that tomorrow will be a good match for both of us.”
You’ve already had the Anfield experience. What do you remember? What does being here mean to you today?
“For me it is a great emotion to come here with Bologna, given that I conquered it on the pitch last year. I hope to do well tomorrow for myself, for the club and for the whole city. We will try to play our game: we have respect for Liverpool, but we are not afraid.”