Live TMW
12.20 – Eve press conference for Davide Ballardini. The coach of Sassuolo will speak from the press room of the Mapei Football Center to present the match againstInter scheduled for tomorrow evening at the Mapei Stadium in Reggio Emilia. Start expected at 12.30.
12.34 – The press conference begins.
Transforming the match against the Italian champions can be an opportunity to be together and to have something to give together…
“The answer is in the question so congratulations. It’s a match that gives you strong emotions. I think that the Sassuolo squad can compete with anyone, clearly we’re playing against the Italian champions who are very strong but for me Sassuolo has a squad that can put in a good performance, even if it comes from two very negative performances, even against Inter.”
Is there one thing that Sassuolo absolutely must do against Inter’s way of playing on the pitch?
“The serious mistake we made against Lecce and Fiorentina was not bringing many players into the ball area and not being aggressive, so having brought few players into the ball area is above all not having had that aggressiveness and that desire to close and double the opponents which allows us to play the game, few players in the ball area, passive and you took some beatings.”
Inter takes the field against the only team that has beaten them, is it an ‘exacerbation’ of the situation due to the stimuli that this can offer Inter?
“Yes, I think so, but it’s right that we think about ourselves, to show, to show, those things I said: bringing many players into the ball area, trying to influence the opponents more, moving away from each other to get the ball , Sassuolo has to be this for me, in the defensive phase you have to slide, understand the situation, the moment, these three-four aspects which are fundamental you have to know how to read them and do them in the right way which is something we absolutely haven’t done in the last two games.”
Is there a risk that fearful people and contracts will be put on the pitch in order to be able to repeat the latest performances?
“Yes but you can only overcome this fear by doing what I said, if you do what we want done then you play the game, as a team because if you put that desire, that clarity, that determination, that competitiveness, that enthusiasm on the pitch what is needed, I know well that Sassuolo has quality players and quality players express themselves thanks to the team that does the things I said before.”
Injury situation?
“We’ve had Berardi, Castillejo and Defrel out for a while. Ruan is disqualified, we have Thorstvedt who has pubic discomfort and we’ll evaluate him tomorrow, Mattia Viti who didn’t finish training today, he has a stomach ache, I don’t know what could be and we will evaluate it tomorrow.”
How do you explain these latest performances? The team almost doesn’t seem to believe it but safety was 2 points away…
“For me the team still believes in survival, it’s clear that the points have increased but we have clashes that can be decisive for our path. I can only explain it in one way: we have guys who care a lot about us and this brings you to be heavier than you need to be and you can’t overcome this heaviness, the fact that you care a lot instead of filling yourself up takes it away.”
Why has Racic fallen off the radar in recent weeks? With him on the pitch in the first matches of his management the team conceded fewer goals…
“We did well as a team, we were never very solid but we were always in the game until our sixth, our seventh and eighth were unwatchable, regardless of a player because he’s not a player who makes you take more or fewer goals”.