Gianfranco Zola believes Roma must match Leicester City’s intensity and compares Jamie Vardy to ex Serie A star Enrico Chiesa.
Roma visit Leicester City in the first leg of the Conference League semi-finals tomorrow. The Giallorossi have a chance to win their first trophy since the 2008 Coppa Italia, won under Luciano Spalletti.
What does Zola expect from the game and what will be Roma’s most demanding task at the King Power Stadium tomorrow?
“Leicester City will put intensity. Brendan Rodgers’ teams always want to control the game through the possession. Roma must defend well, avoid leaving gaps and keep a close eye on Jemie Vardy,” the ex-Chelsea star said.
“He [Vardy] is the best striker in the Premier League when it comes to attacking space.
“He is extraordinary, he is quick and has the right tempo. As they say in England, he is cool in front of the goalkeeper. He can score in any way. He is similar to Chiesa [Enrico]. His shooting is not as smooth, but he is a better header.”
Both Chiesa and Zola played for Parma, but never together, given that Magic Box joined Chelsea in 1996 when Chiesa arrived at the Stadio Tardini.
“Roma must make the most of the opportunities conceded by Leicester. They can hurt them but can’t be too exposed because Leicester have physical and technical qualities even if their results this season are not as good as in the past,” Zola continued.
“The Giallorossi must be prepared to play at a high pace, the big difference between Serie A and Premier League is the intensity. In England, you don’t have time to think when you get the ball. You must think quickly, so being able to face these situations can be helpful for Roma.”
Nicolò Zaniolo scored a hat-trick against Bodo/Glimt in the quarter-finals second leg, but missed the last two Serie A games with an ankle injury. It is still unclear whether the Italy international will start tomorrow, but would he be ready to play in the Premier League one day?
“Yes, but he is not the only one. It all depends on how you adapt. That was true of me, Roberto Di Matteo and Gianluca Vialli, even if we joined Chelsea coming from the best league in the world and that was helpful.”
How about Tammy Abraham? The former Chelsea striker has had a dream debut season in Rome and is the best scorer in the Conference League.
“Tammy has important qualities and enthusiasm. Italy is helping him grow, he must continue like this.”
Napoli beat them no problem enough with this intensity catch all bs these clowns talk about
Leicester Napoli was a very close game and Napoli were challenging for the Scudetto