Sassuolo coach Roberto De Zerbi explained his tactical adjustments in a 2-2 draw with Juventus. “You need courage and to accept risks.”
The Neroverdi had previously lost all six Serie A trips to the Allianz Juventus Stadium, but had been 2-1 up here until a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty.
“You need courage when playing here, otherwise you’re dead before kick-off,” De Zerbi told DAZN.
Sassuolo coach Roberto De Zerbi explained his tactical adjustments in a 2-2 draw with Juventus. “You need courage and to accept risks.”
The Neroverdi had previously lost all six Serie A trips to the Allianz Juventus Stadium, but had been 2-1 up here until a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty.
“You need courage when playing here, otherwise you’re dead before kick-off,” De Zerbi told DAZN.
“We have good players who need to play football, to pass the ball, in order to do their best. It’s also my idea of how to approach the game.
“It can be risky too, because the equaliser came when we were playing out from the back and lost the ball, but you have to accept the risk in order to have that positive approach.
“We were trying to go through the centre and then spread the play wide, otherwise Emer Can and Rodrigo Bentancur would close us down with early pressing. This gave our full-backs the time to make the move. We studied Juve and frankly expected Blaise Matuidi to play, as he is even more aggressive in midfield.
“Meeting Maurizio Sarri is tough, no matter what approach you take. I admire him a great deal. We saw Leonardo Bonucci was a sort of second playmaker, so had Ciccio Caputo closing him down. It was impossible to neutralise Juve, but we could limit their capabilities.”
Sassuolo were in an injury crisis and gave 18-year-old youth team goalkeeper Stefano Turati his Serie A debut.
“The lad is completely crazy, so he honestly didn’t care! I called him into the hotel hall last night and told him to enjoy this. I said not sleeping the night before was normal, but don’t get too anxious at being in this stadium, or meeting Ronaldo and Dybala. I was a player when I was a teenager and felt regret that I didn’t relish those moments when I experienced them for the first time.”