Udinese coach Luca Gotti spoke to Udinese TV on the eve of the home match against Venezia.
Is the Venezia game a chance to build on what the team showed against Juventus on Sunday and take advantage of playing on home soil?
“We hope so. It was wonderful to have the fans back at the stadium. It changes the game although there were also lots of Juventus fans in attendance in our opening game. We hope that starting the season with back-to-back home fixtures helps us pick up as many points as possible.”
What sort of challenge do you expect and what have you made of the squad this week?
“I think the squad has been working very hard. The VAR incident in stoppage time when Ronaldo’s goal was ruled out was key. We can’t be oblivious to what happened. I think it has helped us in the week. The game against Venezia will be very different given the opposition that we’re up against. It’s a match that epitomises the classic difficulties that we find in Serie A. Last year, we lost at home to Spezia and Benevento. The year before, we lost at home to Lecce and Brescia. These teams are all well organised and fast. There’s nothing easy about them.”
Given that you’re playing twice in five days, are you thinking about making changes to the line-up?
“I’m not assessing the players based on tiredness. I don’t think there’s an accumulation of fatigue to take into consideration. I think I’m in a good place to choose the players based on what I can see and how I plan to prepare for the game.”
What did you make of Venezia against Napoli and what sort of team are they
“You have to bear in mind that Venezia were up against a very good side, so much so that Napoli continued to dominate the game even with ten men. I think it’ll be a different story tomorrow and that also applies to last season. They’ll have plenty of players available who couldn’t play against Napoli.”
Nehuen Perez and Isaac Success are joining the club. What sort of players are they and how can they help the team?
“They’re two players who I don’t know well personally, but I do know their technical attributes. I have a clear idea of the contribution that they can make and we’ll see if that fits with how it goes in the day-to-day. I’ve already greeted Perez, but he hasn’t trained yet. He’ll be training for the first today with the team. He won’t be involved for tomorrow’s game due to a visa problem, but he’ll be available for the first match after the international break. Success will probably train with us this afternoon and in terms of registration, he’s available for selection tomorrow.”