Paulo Sousa wants “another coup” for Fiorentina against a Borussia Monchengladbach side “built for the Champions League”.
The Viola won 1-0 in Germany in the first leg of their Europa League Last 32 tie, and welcome the Bundesliga side to Artemio Franchi tomorrow.
“We know how good they are,” Sousa said in his pre-match Press conference.
“In the away leg, in their stadium, we were made to feel their energy. Definitely being at home gives us 20-30 per cent more.
Paulo Sousa wants “another coup” for Fiorentina against a Borussia Monchengladbach side “built for the Champions League”.
The Viola won 1-0 in Germany in the first leg of their Europa League Last 32 tie, and welcome the Bundesliga side to Artemio Franchi tomorrow.
“We know how good they are,” Sousa said in his pre-match Press conference.
“In the away leg, in their stadium, we were made to feel their energy. Definitely being at home gives us 20-30 per cent more.
“We want to do it all together, pull of another coup. This is a team built for the Champions League, they’re doing very well and they put us under pressure in the first half.
“Strategically we’ll change something, especially in terms of defensive organisation, but we improved in the second half in Germany.
“We have a lot of belief in the work that we’re doing. In terms of the attack we need to move the ball quickly, we have a small advantage and there’s time to find the right moment to get it forward.
“Borussia are very intense and they work both individually and in groups, with short distances between the lines.
“At the start of the first leg we allowed our opponents too much time in attack. This time we have to force them backward.
“We need to play to win, not to manage the lead. We’ll play to get a goal.”
Sousa was also asked about the importance of the fans, given the hostile atmosphere in Germany for the first leg.
“In comparison to other places we have good numbers, the unity and thrust of the fans is important to achieve anything. I hope they’ll be there, because they’re important.”
Will the team who goes through tomorrow be in with a chance of winning the competition?
“Whoever gets through can go far,” Sousa agreed.
“Then we’ll also need to have luck on our side. I remember a Champions League final between Porto and Monaco, but they had to come through a lot of direct clashes to get that far.”