Leonardo Semplici refused to discuss the Cristiano Ronaldo potential red card, instead blaming Cagliari for ‘the wrong attitude’ against Juventus.
This was his first defeat on the Cagliari bench after seven points from three games since replacing Eusebio Di Francesco.
Leonardo Semplici refused to discuss the Cristiano Ronaldo potential red card, instead blaming Cagliari for ‘the wrong attitude’ against Juventus.
This was his first defeat on the Cagliari bench after seven points from three games since replacing Eusebio Di Francesco.
Giovanni Simeone got a goal back in the second half, ending his drought, but the match was finished by a Cristiano Ronaldo hat-trick in the opening 32 minutes.
There were also suggestions from former referees that Ronaldo could easily have been sent off for a high foot on goalkeeper Alessio Cragno, leaving the shot-stopper with a cut to the chin.
“I have never talked about referees and I am not going to start now,” Semplici told Sky Sport Italia when asked about the incident.
“We allowed Juve too many counter-attacks and left ourselves open to their strengths. We didn’t keep the right distances and had the wrong attitude from the start.
“I take responsibility, because evidently I didn’t manage to drill into the team how important our attitude was in this game.
“I think ultimately it was more our fault that we lost rather than giving credit to Juve, even if we did have a reaction after the break.
“There’s a long way to go this season and we must improve a great deal.”