Maurizio Sarri lambasted his Lazio players for lacking ‘mentality’ and defended the decision to drop Luis Alberto after an ‘unacceptable’ 4-1 defeat to Hellas Verona.
The Biancocelesti continued their incredible inconsistency with a humiliating loss at the Stadio Bentegodi, Giovanni Simeone scoring all four goals.
After hours in the locker room for a debriefing, they finally emerged and announced the club had ordered them into a training retreat.
“With all due respect, this team cannot beat Roma and Inter and then lose to Bologna and Verona,” said Sarri in his press conference.
“This leads me to believe there is still a serious lack of mentality here. It’s true that the Europa League is stressful, but today I had only two players who were on for 90 minutes on Thursday, so we can remove the alibi of physical fatigue.
“This performance surprised me, because the team looked aware of how important the match was, then we melted like snow in the sunshine. Verona were simply far more aggressive and they dominated us.”
Sarri again dropped Luis Alberto, this time in favour of Jean-Daniel Akpa-Akpro and not Toma Basic, leading to even more questions about the Spaniard’s role in this squad.
“If we win against Roma and Inter, those ideas seem sound, after a defeat the pundits change their opinions,” replied Sarri.
“I work for the badge on the front of the jersey and try to help the name on the back, but I will never do it the other way round. I will put everyone in the condition to give their best, but my primary interest is Lazio.”
He won’t forget this match in a hurry! 🔥
Diego Simeone’s son Giovanni scored all four goals for Verona against his dad’s old side, Lazio! 💪 pic.twitter.com/38zueRUQDa
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) October 24, 2021