03 March 2023
03 March 2023

Sottil: "Bold and adventurous in Bergamo"

The coach discusses Saturday's visit to Atalanta

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Andrea Sottil spoke to the media on Friday ahead of Udinese's match away to Atalanta. This is what he had to say...
 
PREPARATIONS
“We've had a good week's work. The players have trained well in good spirits. Regarding my comments after the Spezia match, I have an frank, open relationship with the lads and they're fully aware of that. We've said it face to face many times and I said the same things on that occasion. I don't fake things in normal life. You might not always agree but I believe it's the best way. The lads all agreed with me but I had no doubts about that. [Marco] Silvestri's comments didn't surprise me they were nice to hear.”
 
MASINA
“I'll take this opportunity to thank Adam publicly. He immediately made himself available because of the absences we had but after an injury like his it's never easy to come straight in and perform in big matches, especially physical ones like against Inter. He's shown how important this team, his team-mates and I am to him. I picked him again against Spezia despite knowing it could be a little risky because the body has to readjust to playing at high intensity. He's one of the leaders of this team, even when he was sidelined he was there for his team-mates.”
 
SUCCESS
“Isaac is a top professional. I've never once seen him put in less than 100% effort in training and he produces big performances. He's highly valued by both me and his team-mates. He's an extraordinary forward in terms of link-up play and creating chances. We're working with him on a mental level to try to get him into the box more and to have more shots. We want him to show the same determination in trying to score as he does playing in his team-mates.”
 
ATALANTA 
“It's always a good game against Atalanta as they play total football. They're an intense, physical side and they're fast too. We've prepared well for it. We know what their strengths are and where we can strike them. We have to enact our game plan. You can't go to Bergamo and just watch Atalanta play. Any team in the world can suffer a dip in form, whether it's performances, results or both, but they're a formidable side and [Gian Piero] Gasperini is up there among the best in Europe. They'll be very angry after recent results. As I said, we must go there and play our game, otherwise we're unlikely to get anything from it. We have have to go there and be bold and adventurous, while respecting Atalanta. [Roberto] Pereyra isn't fully fit but he's gritting his teeth. He'll be available for selection.”