Roberto D’Aversa admits Parma ‘aren’t good enough at this level’ after their 4-3 defeat to Crotone, but opened the door to staying at the Stadio Tardini.
Both teams are practically relegated anyway, but this loss to the bottom club just highlighted how much the Ducali are struggling.
Roberto D’Aversa admits Parma ‘aren’t good enough at this level’ after their 4-3 defeat to Crotone, but opened the door to staying at the Stadio Tardini.
Both teams are practically relegated anyway, but this loss to the bottom club just highlighted how much the Ducali are struggling.
“Points always matter, because we are not mathematically relegated yet. This match shows what I’ve seen since I returned, which is that we react to setbacks, then manage to make incredible mistakes,” De Zerbi told Sky Sport Italia.
“This proves that when you make those errors, both upfront and at the back, you will lose at a level like Serie A.
“I don’t know that we’re lacking in confidence. We scored three goals and still conceded four. We made too many mistakes and systematically conceding a goal on every set play is just not sustainable.
“We lack nous, we lack leadership and we are not good enough for this level. There’s no point taking people for a ride here.”
Parma had been famously solid at the back and strong on the counter under D’Aversa, but after he was dismissed and returned to replace Fabio Liverani, they’ve just leaked goals.
“We always find ourselves chasing the game and when we are leading, even with a two-goal lead, we always manage to get caught.
“I think the team lacks leaders who can take responsibility and push the team forward. I honestly don’t even understand such a radical change myself, there must be many different aspects contributing to it.
“We were leading 3-2 at Cagliari, but in the final minutes we took the free kicks quickly, we rushed our moves, we didn’t take the sting out of the game or try to control the tempo. That’s all a lack of experience.”
D’Aversa had taken Parma from Serie C to Serie A following their bankruptcy, so will he remain at the Stadio Tardini?
“The future of Parma will certainly be bright with this President. This is a glorious club and we must honour the jersey to the last game of the season. We have to focus on the present.
“Personally, I have no concern about working in Serie B. The fans know what it means to suffer, they worked their way up from Serie D even before I arrived, so we need to pass that message on to the players. We’ll sit down and discuss it later, but we must end this campaign with dignity.”