Two days ahead of the match against Carrarese, head coach Luca D'Angelo spoke in his pre-match press conference: “First of all, I’d like to remember Massimo Benedetti, a kind person who was always extremely positive toward Spezia. His passing affected me deeply, so I want to honor his memory and send my heartfelt condolences to his family.
The team is aware that our position in the standings isn’t good, so it’s natural to feel concerned. Over these ten days, we’ve worked on two or three tactical concepts without completely changing the direction we had found, especially toward the end of my previous spell.
My return was driven more by emotion than calculation. I build strong connections with people, so when I was asked to come back, I didn’t hesitate, I did it with real passion and strong mental intensity.
During the winter transfer window, several important players for this league arrived, but there were also quite a few injuries in recent months that affected both the team’s and individual performances. This is a different team compared to the one I had before, not better or worse, just different and that means we’ll need some different ideas as well.
Bandinelli has been doing very well, even though he’s been slowed down by a few injuries. As for Artistico, I found him in great shape. He hadn’t scored under me except in the Cup, but it’s also true he was dealing with an injury during that period, as well as one in preseason. He was my first choice for the attack last summer, and if he’s at Spezia, it’s partly thanks to me. I take on a lot of responsibility, but not for him not scoring in the first half of the season.
For Monday’s match, all players will be available except for the long-term absentees. Not having our fans with us is something that unfortunately keeps happening, and we’re truly sorry about that. On our side, we’ll have to counter Carrarese’s enthusiasm with our desire to impose our game and bring home the points we need, we know our fans will support us from afar.
Goalkeeper? Radunovic will play, because he’s been performing well. Even when results don’t come, people tend to look for faults, but he has always done his job very well. Mascardi, for me, is a player with great potential, and I’m sure he’ll have a bright future, whether at Spezia or elsewhere.
Valoti? His quality is unquestionable, I’ve faced him many times as an opponent, and he’s a very strong player. Comotto was also growing a lot with us before his injury with the national team, which prevented us from using him. As for Romano, we already wanted him last summer, he’s an important player with great physical and technical qualities, but Roma decided to keep him.
I think the January transfer window was handled well and brought in important players. That said, I’ve seen a lot of unfair criticism toward players who gave everything over the past two years. In difficult moments, it wasn’t right to attack them so harshly. We shouldn’t only remember the tough times, but everything they’ve done for Spezia. I believe that in a few years, these players will be remembered for how well they performed here. At the same time, I hope the new arrivals can leave their mark and be remembered in the same way.
I’ve seen that coach Roberto Donadoni has occasionally used a four-man defense, and that’s definitely something this team can do. In general, if we were previously more structured in our system, now we also have additional options.
Teams tend to stick with a system that brings results, and it’s hard to move away from it because you hope things will improve over time. Toward the end of my previous spell, things were actually improving, but due to certain circumstances, we couldn’t win some matches. Now we have a deeper squad with more tactical alternatives, which allows me to make more choices.
Nagy? He’s a senior figure in the squad regardless of his minutes, because he’s a leader in the locker room. He brings positivity and strong character, you don’t earn nearly 100 caps for your national team without that.
Lapadula? He’s a top striker. I’ve seen him in great shape over these twelve days, so he could start or come off the bench. He’s a player we rely on, not just a lot, but a whole lot.
Sernicola? An important signing with experience and quality. Adamo? For me, he’s a wide player who can operate on both flanks and has the ability to quickly turn defense into attack, something we were lacking before.
Fitness levels? Objectively, there have been more than ten muscle injuries in recent months, something that had never happened before. I want to make it clear I’m not referring to coach Donadoni, who is a true gentleman. After my dismissal, people said the team wasn’t fit, even as far as Pescara, but with the same work we collected over 100 points in two years, and injuries were never this frequent, so perhaps things weren’t that bad. I also don’t appreciate when a coach is dismissed and only the negatives are remembered. It’s like a couple separating after 30 years and only remembering the last one, forgetting the previous 29. That’s what happened to me, but I can handle it.
Carrarese? They’re a solid team, coached by a very well-prepared manager, and they play with great cohesion. We know we’ll be facing an organized side, so we’ll need to be just as organized and ready to fight. We’ve worked on several tactical situations, and we’ll make our final decisions tomorrow".
Cookie per Social Networks
Si tratta dei cookie che consentono di condividere anche con altri utenti i contenuti del sito che si sta visitando. Sono i cookie tipicamente utilizzati per attivare le funzioni “Mi piace” o “Segui” dei Social Network quali Facebook e Twitter, solo per citarne alcuni. Queste funzioni consentono ai Social Network di identificare i propri utenti e raccogliere informazioni anche mentre navigano su altri siti.