Leonardo Semplici insists it would’ve been ‘unthinkable’ to start his Cagliari career with seven points from three games, so he’s holding on tight to a 2-2 draw against Sampdoria.
The Sardinians had been leading through Joao Pedro and hoping for a third consecutive victory, but considering Samp had turned it around through Bartosz Bereszynski and Manolo Gabbiadini scorchers, the Radja Nainggolan last-gasp equaliser was precious.
Leonardo Semplici insists it would’ve been ‘unthinkable’ to start his Cagliari career with seven points from three games, so he’s holding on tight to a 2-2 draw against Sampdoria.
The Sardinians had been leading through Joao Pedro and hoping for a third consecutive victory, but considering Samp had turned it around through Bartosz Bereszynski and Manolo Gabbiadini scorchers, the Radja Nainggolan last-gasp equaliser was precious.
“We played a really good game, especially in the first half,” Semplici told Sky Sport Italia.
“After the break, we made some mistakes and allowed Samp back into it. These are difficult matches, you need to be more clinical when you create certain scoring opportunities.
“Having said that, I liked the performance and the draw was the right result.”
Semplici had seemingly given up on an equaliser, as he had put his coat back on and was ready to walk away when Nainggolan fired in.
“It’s going to be a real coup if we manage to stay in Serie A. The impact has been positive, because it was unthinkable we’d get seven points in my first three games. We’ve achieved nothing yet, but it’s a good sign.”
Cagliari seem to be transformed since Semplici took over from Eusebio Di Francesco last month.
“I wasn’t here, so I don’t know what happened, but it’s evident looking at the squad list that this team couldn’t just have 15 points. There’s still a long way to go and not all the problems have been resolved, but with these players, I trust we can achieve our target.”
Semplici made another change in this game, using Alfred Duncan as a central midfielder.
“I looked at the characteristics of all the players and I think his intelligence, physicality and vision make him the best player to protect the defence.”