Maurizio Sarri insists Lazio deserved to beat Roma by more than 1-0 in the Coppa Italia quarter-final and explains why he picked an unknown goalkeeper for this huge test.
The Aquile had most of the only genuine scoring opportunities in the match, as well as the only goal when Mattia Zaccagni converted the penalty for a Dean Huijsen foul on Taty Castellanos.
Mourinho claimed that was a spot-kick “suited to modern football” that is only given in the age of VAR.
“Considering the footage I saw, it is a clear penalty,” replied Sarri in the press conference. “The defender doesn’t even go near to the ball. It only took Daniele Orsato eight seconds to view it on the monitor.
“In any case, that’s only relatively interesting, because aside from three or four minutes during stoppages, Roma had zero scoring opportunities. It is frankly shameful that we failed to double our lead in the 20 minutes after scoring. Overall, the 1-0 result is very tight considering the performances.”
Since taking over, Sarri has won four of his six Derby della Capitale ties against Roma, losing only once.
To make it an even more special moment, today is Sarri’s birthday, but he made a surprising confession.
“I really couldn’t care less about the Coppa Italia, because even in Serie A, the derby is worth more than just three points. These games are played for the fans and we are happy to have given joy to the Lazio supporters.
“Besides, spending the evening of my birthday losing a derby would’ve been really sad.”
Sarri lost goalkeeper Ivan Provedel to flu symptoms, but rather than Luigi Sepe, he picked third-choice goalkeeper Christos Mandas for the debut in a Lazio jersey.
“Mandas did very well in training. Plus because he is ours and not on loan, it was important to see him in action during a real match. He was tense at the start, but then did really well and confirmed those good sensations he had given to us.”
It was a chaotic ending to the game, as Pedro, Sardar Azmoun and Gianluca Mancini were all sent off in stoppages, so the two Lazio players will be suspended for the first leg of the semi-final against either Juventus or Frosinone.
It is going to be a very busy January, as Lazio will also have the Supercoppa Italian Final Four in Saudi Arabia, so has Sarri finally managed to get his team playing consistently?
“For the moment yes, but every now and then that can change. There are teams in Serie A who are better equipped than we are, and we know that, but we must thank the new signings who for a while kept us afloat while some stars from last season had a dip in form. If the atmosphere in the locker room remains like this, we could make up some lost ground.
“Lecce is very important this weekend on a psychological level, because if we recover from the derby and focus entirely on that game, it will mean we really have made a big step forward. We struggled in the past with that sort of situation, so it is a real test.”
#Sarri: “Il rigore è netto. Una bestemmia non aver raddoppiato”https://t.co/a9mCJpYh0z
— Alfredo Pedullà (@AlfredoPedulla) January 10, 2024
Roma are terrible. I feel bad for their fans who have to watch that dreck every week.
Sorry Sarri, it’s not because Lazio was good, it’s because our Roma was terrible. Lack of scoring opportunities is common every week. Being a Roma fan is brutal.
Can we sack Mou yet? Cant rotate the squad or play well. No doubt they’ll renew his contract and have another 2 years of stale football
@marco both Rome clubs, from their management to their fans are terrible. But Roma is worse.