Stefano Pioli assures he will field “the best Lazio” against Galatasaray, because “the Europa League is an objective.”
The first leg in the Round of 32 kicks off on Thursday evening and the Coach spoke to media at the Turk Telekom Arena.
“I expect a hard-fought match against a strong opponent who lost just one of their Champions League games against Atletico Madrid,” said Pioli.
Stefano Pioli assures he will field “the best Lazio” against Galatasaray, because “the Europa League is an objective.”
The first leg in the Round of 32 kicks off on Thursday evening and the Coach spoke to media at the Turk Telekom Arena.
“I expect a hard-fought match against a strong opponent who lost just one of their Champions League games against Atletico Madrid,” said Pioli.
“They have a high tempo, intensity and we must play with the same characteristics. We want to go forward, this is an important competition and our objective is to get through to the next stage.
“We want to go forward in Europe and continue to face great opponents like Galatasaray. We also want to be back in Europe next season.
“The home fans will be fiery, but we have been charged up by that sort of atmosphere before and we can do it again here.
“Federico Marchetti will start in goal and I will play the best Lazio for this match. Stefan Radu has recovered, Milan Bisevac is still trying to fully recover from a muscular problem and we’ll see his condition in training.
“I liked Lazio in recent outings. We have to defend with all 11 players and attack the same way. Galatasaray have weak points and tomorrow we must try to make the most of them.”
There will be enhanced security in Istanbul, as there was a car bomb in the Turkish capital Ankara this evening, killing at least five people.