Lazio director Igli Tare insists Maurizio Sarri wants to ‘go all the way’ in the Europa League and explains Pedro’s rapid recovery to start against FC Porto.
It kicks off at the Stadio Olimpico at 17.45 GMT, you can follow all the build-up and action as it happens on the LIVEBLOG.
Europa League Liveblog: Olympiacos-Atalanta, Lazio-Porto, Napoli-Barcelona
They lost the first leg of this play-off 2-1 and therefore need a victory this evening to reach the Round of 16.
Sarri stirred up controversy when he commented that without the Europa League commitments, Lazio would probably already be competing for the top four in Serie A. Does the coach really see this as a hindrance?
“I think Sarri was just trying to provoke something, as he knows we can reach the Champions League with this tournament. It’s difficult to go all the way, but not impossible,” Tare told Sky Sport Italia.
“Seeing him in training and the motivational speech he gave the team, you realise how much he really cares about this competition.”
Pedro was not even expected to be on the bench due to injury, but he is surprisingly in the starting XI.
“He had an unexpected improvement, this morning the fitness test went very well, so he wanted to be there and help the team.
“Lucas Leiva and Luis Alberto were suspended against Udinese, so they are fresh. Sergej Milinkovic-Savic has played more than the others, but he is a leader, he can only bring positive motivation.
“There are pros and cons to going forward in the competition. As far as I am concerned, I’d like us to keep going and hopefully an Italian club can win the Europa League.”
Lazio players and the coach both said repeatedly at the start of the campaign that they didn’t quite understand each other. Has that changed?
“I was talking to Sarri, it’s now a month and a half that he is convinced about this squad, while the team also believes in and understands what he is asking. We have to keep that positive trend going.”
#TareOut