Mister Michele Pazienza, the director of the technical area Giorgio Perinetti and the sporting director Luigi Condò spoke during the Contatto Sport broadcast on Prima Tivvù. Below are some statements released by the protagonists.
Michele Pazienza
On the championship finale: “There is a lot of joy because it is an important goal, which does not give us the victory of the championship but gives us that energy and that extra confidence to get to the playoffs better than what the classification could have been with a different path. The result achieved in the last match is deserved for what the boys did, for how they worked and for their availability in all situations, in good moments and in difficult ones. Second place gives us some small advantages, but it certainly makes us arrive with greater self-esteem. Without forgetting the most important aspect which gave us the opportunity to embrace our people again.”
On the program in view of the playoffs: “We have to remodel it, we have already remodeled it but we have to define the friendlies. We must maintain an acceptable physical condition, while unloading the mental one a little. We need to recharge from a psychological point of view and prepare ourselves on a physical level. When the tournament starts, we will have the opportunity to watch the opponents. We’ll start working again on Wednesday, a little bit will change compared to the friendlies and the rest day, scheduled for Sunday, will instead be moved a little further forward.”
Pazienza also talks about the quality of the staff: “I have always said that I have an excellent, deep squad at my disposal. On Sunday I made only one management, having nine warnings: I managed Frascatore because it is the only position in which I don’t have the double possibility because he is the only left-handed arm in the squad. In attack I have different characteristics which also give me the possibility of changing the game system or the type of strategy to adopt based on the match and its progress.”
Certain characteristics during the match in progress like Sgarbi as midfielder? “It’s true that we haven’t had them for a few weeks, but it’s equally true that we only had Sgarbi at full capacity. Russo only returned to fitness in the last month after the very long injury. D’Ausilio arrived in January, he needed a period to adapt to our playing speed. They are players who provide dynamism in the middle. By choice we also used Varela who is about to return. In that area of the pitch we prefer to put those characteristics in at least one of the three interpreters. Sgarbi’s is a solution that we can adopt during the match, I see it as difficult from the start because greater balance is needed in the playoffs, we cannot afford to start too unscrupulously.”
On Patierno: “He is very good both inside the area and outside, he manages to tie up the game very well. I’m lucky enough to have players as strong as Patierno in my squad and this has allowed me to replace him or not risk him on some occasions. By characteristics he is a player who can last 95 minutes. Rude? Opponents have learned about his characteristics and capabilities. The whole load shouldn’t be put on his shoulders, as happened with Marconi and Patierno. Responsibilities must be distributed and this has benefited us”
On the fans: “I hope to see many of them again, as happened with Benevento and Crotone, and see a sold out crowd again, even in the stands.”
Giorgio Perinetti
On the season finale of the Wolves: “Recently we have seen a determined Avellino, applied and aware of being able to reach this important place of honour. The euphoria of second place must last three days. Then it will be time to go back to work and it will be very important to understand that what we do in these weeks will lead us to face these first two matches that await us, knowing that we will have to face an opponent of great value.”
On the difficulty: “It was always the initial one, changing many players and introducing many new ones. There was the risk that many changes would not favor the immediate fusion of a team that still had quality. We have created a healthy group of important professionals. Now unity, abandoning the “I” and thinking about the “We” matter even more. We have a long squad and 10 minutes can be decisive for a player, just as leaving after 80 minutes shouldn’t be a humiliation. We must believe in the work of Pazienza, who led the team with balance. We must be united and compact. I’ve never made the playoffs like this, luckily I had already won the C championship before, it didn’t go like that here and that’s my regret. There are many strong opponents, but we have to blend in with the public because a team never wins alone. It wins with strong ownership, with a stable environment and with passionate fans.”
Perinetti talks about the January market: “It served to help Pazienza to have players functional to his ideas. He didn’t participate in the summer transfer market, so it was right to sign players who matched his ideas. We didn’t make prestigious additions, but ones that were functional to our coach’s football. Worst moment? That goal scored in injury time against Juve Stabia and at the end of a very contradictory match. At that moment the non-victory distanced the team from the belief of being able to reach first place, there was a negative psychological repercussion. We could have done more and put pressure on. Best moment? The compactness of this final, we reversed the situation at home and took second place, these situations allowed us to reunite with the public”.
On the playoffs: “I hope we won’t face teams from our group again, but for a matter of cabal. I hope to see the Avellino team we have seen in recent weeks, who are well and who are aware of their abilities because I think they are a difficult team to beat. We can play it with everyone. We had some complicated moments, but we overcame them together. We have great ownership, which respects roles and which allows us to work. Until the last moment for D’Agostino and the public we must give our best. We have a mission to accomplish and we hope we can achieve our goal.”
Luigi Condò
On Avellino’s journey: “Second place is important, we deserved it. We tried to win this championship, but there are also opponents. That’s how it went, but second position is a good starting point.”
On Patierno: “He is an important player, he has personality, he knows how to play with the team and he sacrifices himself. He reached great levels at an advanced age, but strikers like Patierno are difficult to find at the moment, especially in Lega Pro. Avellino also has other strong strikers, such as Gori, Sgarbi, Marconi and Russo. From this point of view, the numbers speak for themselves, we are the best attack in the championship. This testifies to the quality of our advanced department and the team that allows our attackers to be able to score.”
On Ghidotti: “I believe that goalkeeper is the most difficult role. It is a role subject to criticism. He demonstrated great personality in the moments in which he was criticized, he always responded presently, made exceptional interventions and made some mistakes, which are part of growth. He demonstrated character and personality in a beautiful and difficult place like Avellino.”
On Perinetti: “I have a great relationship with him. I was lucky enough to work with him this year, it’s a source of great growth for me. His words make me happy. I thank him, we hope to end as we all hope. Patience? I believe he is a coherent and serious person. All of us who work in football can make mistakes or guess something. We are operators, working in this world. The coach has had a good run here, since he arrived he has scored four points less than Juve Stabia. He has an important points average, has credibility in the group and is respected by the players. He is a good person and a capable coach. I want to say that we are at the foot of the climb, which will be very long and difficult. We didn’t do anything, we take second place and I think Avellino achieved an important result. We want to face these playoffs giving satisfaction to the square and the owners.”
On the playoffs: “We will prepare as if the championship were still underway. There will be weekly training sessions, we will try to establish useful friendlies. The three-day postponement changes the working week. The program we had already thought of will change a little. The team must train well. We will miss the weekly match, taking a break for 24 days is not an easy thing, but we have a professional staff. The friendlies will be important. Slippage? Unfortunately it is a situation that changes a lot and that affects the teams that will have to compete in the playoffs.”
