Triestina-Caldiero Terme prematch

On the day before the Triestina-Caldiero Terme match, scheduled for Sunday, 8 September at Stadio Nereo Rocco with kickoff at 18:30 CET, coach Michele Santoni spoke to the press.

Santoni: "Last week, the problem arose when we conceded a goal after just four minutes, a goal that should not have been allowed like that. We've discussed it a lot this week, and we should have been much more attentive. match became complicated, especially when you're up against a team that focuses on defending and closing down spaces, and even more so when they were down to ten men. We got stuck playing almost exclusively down the wings, and I expected more personality from some players to try and unlock the game in a different way. We delivered 56 crosses into the box, and a team that performs so poorly doesn’t deliver the ball into the opposition's area that many times. The result always has an influence—since we lost 1-0, it's easy to say the match was all negative. We gave away three chances and controlled the rest of the game, but without really hurting them, even though we had opportunities. This is something we must definitely improve on. Let’s learn from the last match, bring to the pitch what needs to be done differently, and make sure we are ready. The best thing about football is the chance to show, starting tomorrow, that we have learned from the previous match, and tomorrow we will definitely need to show something different. It's obvious that the defeat against Clodiense has affected the mood this week. Regarding the fans' criticism, my stance is that the fans are always right—football was born as a sport for everyone, and everyone has their own opinion. Sure, you can discuss the excitement after the first win and then the criticism comes right after the next match, but we know that many fans are still behind the team, understand the situation, and will support us tomorrow as well. I’m the coach of this team, and it was right that I took responsibility on Saturday—the important thing is for the players to work calmly. As for the issue with the sporting director, this situation hasn't disrupted the squad. From the start of the season, we had already decided to keep the directors of the technical area more distanced than last year. The team decided to be isolated to focus as much as possible on the work on the pitch. This was a strictly club decision, so it's not for me to say how this transition has been handled. 

For me, Olivieri is our ideal striker, and he has shown glimpses of this even in these very early days with the squad. In terms of fitness, he could last a half based on endurance, but from a muscular standpoint, I have a few more doubts. He’s an explosive player with a lot of power in his legs and has had some past issues with his hamstring, so we need to carefully assess whether it’s worth the risk tomorrow. He’s been training individually for two months, and these are his first days with the squad, so we’ll have to think very carefully about whether to take the risk, especially considering the absentees, including those away on international duty. At this point, we can’t afford to risk losing anyone else for an extended period, especially not a player with Marco’s qualities. In terms of recoveries, we will definitely have Braima back tomorrow, while for the others, it's a matter of evaluating the short-term risks we are willing to take, knowing that we could compromise something in the long term. That said, the most important match is always tomorrow’s, not the one next week. As for possible formation changes, something will change given the players available. As for whether it’s difficult to see Voca, Braima, Correia, and D’Urso all together, tomorrow you’ll see them all on the pitch together. And I’m very happy about that.”