Italiano: ‘Fiorentina will find different Napoli in Supercoppa Italiana’

Vincenzo Italiano feels that his Fiorentina will see ‘a completely different story’ in their Supercoppa Italiana clash with Napoli.

The Viola secured a comfortable 3-1 win over the defending champions back in October, the last match with Rudi Garcia in the dugout. They’ve maintained their strong form in recent months, keeping them fourth in the Serie A table.

Fiorentina will face Napoli in the Supercoppa Italiana semi-final on Thursday before possibly playing the victor of Lazio–Inter in the final on Monday next week. Their next league outing is against Inter on January 28, a key clash in their fight for Champions League qualification.

Speaking in a press conference via TMW, Italiano first weighed in on Fiorentina’s mindset heading into their clash with Napoli.

“I think too much time has passed since the league match with Napoli, a lot of things happened and so I think that was a good parenthesis for us. We managed to express ourselves well, but tomorrow will be a completely different story.

“We start from just one objective, to be able to get through this semi-final and get to play for this trophy. Tomorrow I am convinced that we will find a different, strong Napoli, champions of Italy, with many quality players and champions available.

“I hope that in these days we have prepared for them in the right way, we know we are facing players who are always champions, people who can win matches.

“I hope we have prepared in the best way, in the league we really approached them in the right way and developed in the best way.”

He was asked if he liked the organisation regarding the Supercoppa Italiana in Saudi Arabia.

“Everything was fine, we didn’t travel a lot, but where we train everything was fine. From the changing rooms to the pitch, you can see that they want to grow, and we want to bring this sport to an important level, to get to know this culture.”

The Viola coach commented on the condition of star winger Nicholas Gonzalez.

“Today he played 20 minutes with the team… He’s recovered and we’re pleased, but it’s not enough to insert him, to bring him in.

“Together with him there’s Dodo, who yesterday started with the team in a gradual manner and doing a little personal work. They’ve recovered and little by little they will work more, we will try to bring them up to condition.”

Italiano reflected on Fiorentina’s two defeats in cup finals last season.

“We, as mentioned before, reached those two finals, after an extraordinary journey, and when you go to the final you know you are facing a strong team, who have also reached the final. In one it was Inter, in the other it was West Ham, who are doing great things in the Premier League.

“It’s clear that in some respects we did some things wrong, from a defensive point of view you are called into question against these big names and there you have to know how to hold your ground.

“In the league this year the team is succeeding, we have an important defensive system and we are not suffering like in previous years. Attention has increased, we have been working for two and a half years and therefore we know each other.

“There is also a theme of individual growth, as well as tactics. The boys know that playing with maximum attention can limit errors in this type of match, those errors that punished us.

“I hope that this lesson has been understood, we tried to present ourselves tomorrow in the most suitable team to put the Italian champions in difficulty, people who have players like Kvara, Simeone, Raspadori, Politano, Di Lorenzo.”

He spoke about the impact of this tournament on Fiorentina’s goals in Serie A and the Conference League.

“We are proud to be here, together with these teams, for us it must only be a moment of great growth to play without pressure, without any tension, tomorrow free of head and mind.

“We must try to propose what has allowed us to be here and don’t think that the objectives will change when we return to Florence.

“We must play with great serenity, then we will see the future. We will make up games, we are in an area of the table with all the strong and growing teams, but in the meantime let’s think about these commitments.

“Then we will think about the league, where we are very keen on improving the finishes of the previous two years.”

Finally, Italiano was asked if he was happy with the results and project at Fiorentina.

“I believe in both things. In my opinion the results were also unexpected, playing two finals hadn’t happened for many years. Immediately in the first year we qualified for a European cup, and this year we are still proving that we are a mature team, who have grown.

“As a technical project we have developed many kids, we have grown, we have given the opportunity to many kids and also me to play important level matches, where perhaps no one imagined they could be present.

“The result and the technical project went hand in hand, being here is a huge satisfaction, we are here with the Italian champions and the European vice-champions.”