Gattuso Delighted With ‘Iron Man’ Lazio Defender, Reveals His Pellegrini Intentions
Lazio head coach Gennaro Gattuso previewed Sunday’s game against Monza, warning his players against complacency.
Gennaro Gattuso Expects Difficult Game Against Monza
After an almost flawless start to the season, the Biancocelesti currently share the top spot in the Serie A table alongside Roma and Inter Milan. On the other hand, Ivan Juric’s side sits 16th in the table. Nevertheless, this is the sort of game that many pundits have described as a trap, since the Biancorossi have performed better than their early results suggest.
Gattuso is fully aware of the threat Monza poses, praising his opponents in Saturday’s pre-match press conference (via La Lazio Siamo Noi).
We need to be fully alert and not allow ourselves to be caught by surprise. Monza are a courageous team, a young side with plenty of energy. They will press us intensely. We need to be ready and humble. It might look like an easy game, but it is anything but. We need a great Lazio performance to take points home.
The Lazio manager will be presented with a few selection dilemmas, especially at centre-back, as he’ll have to choose between those who were called up by their national teams (like Provstgaard and Sutalo) and their teammates who remained at Formello (like Doekhi and Leite).
We have worked hard, the players have rested, and we have given playing time to those who hadn’t been getting any. Some players returned from international duty full of enthusiasm and with minutes under their belts. I thought they looked good and showed the intensity we are looking for. I’m happy with how they returned and how they trained.
Andrea Pinamonti Must Be Patient
Andrea Pinamonti has yet to reach the required level to earn an automatic starting berth at Lazio, so Gattuso urges him to keep digging, and he’ll eventually earn his opportunity.
As I already said in Venice, the decisions are now mine to make. He (Pinamonti) and the others must all remain calm. I do everything I can to keep the team functioning. We need everyone, but ultimately, I have to make the choices. I’m happy with how he is training and how he is improving. He needs to keep going like this, but the same applies to everyone else.
Gattuso Praises Oliver Provstgaard
The 48-year-old took the opportunity to praise Oliver Provstgaard’s elusive physique when asked about the Danish defender, who was particularly busy during the international break.
We’ll see tomorrow. Provstgaard is doing well; he’s got an Iron Man’s physique. He enjoys working, and he’s a strong lad. He’s already played almost 2,000 minutes, he’s doing well, and he’s been training. He’s going at full throttle, like everyone else.
Will Luca Pellegrini Return to the Squad?
Over the past few days, it has been reported that Luca Pellegrini could be reinstated to the club’s Serie A squad list. Gattuso insists he’s pushing to bring the left-back to the fold, although the final decision lies with the management.
I speak to everyone, and Luca understands the club’s situation. It’s a club matter. We’ll see what happens. The club knows my thoughts. As long as I’m here, everyone must be treated as a professional and treated well. He has never been excluded from the squad. He’s always made himself available and has played in the friendlies. He understands that someone has to miss out because we have three left-backs. As far as I’m concerned, he is 100% a Lazio player, but the decision rests with the club. We still have two places available in the squad, and the club knows what I think.
Why Lazio Like to Push Forward
Under Gattuso, Lazio have been adopting a proactive approach, with the team bringing the ball forward as quickly as possible. The manager believes this strategy also works as a preventive measure against losing possession in a dangerous area.
I think it’s the opposite. If you keep passing the ball around without looking forward, you risk losing possession. We need to look forward. I don’t care about possession for possession’s sake. When we win the ball back, given that we want to press extremely high up the pitch, we need to look forward.
Lazio Must Exclusively Focus on Monza
The Milan legend insists Lazio must remain humble and take it one step at a time without dwelling too much on the standings.
At the moment, we want to play in a particular way. If we want to do certain things, we have to do them at 100%. This is certainly a game in which we need to be mentally alert and know which moves to make. They are aggressive and have no fear. We need courage and must know how to hurt Monza. Being top of the table doesn’t mean much to me. I don’t look at the standings. We’re thinking only about Monza, and then we’ll see. I’m not feeling dizzy from being at the top. We need humility and the desire to keep surprising people.
Gattuso on Potential Free Agents
It has recently been reported that the Biancocelesti could sign a free agent before potentially suffering another transfer ban in January. However, Gattuso doesn’t seem to be too fond of the idea, as he might prefer to preserve the current squad balance.
I speak to the sporting director (Angelo Fabiani) every day. I don’t speak much about football with the president (Claudio Lotito). We need to consider both the human and footballing aspects. There are many factors to take into account. This is a group that works hard, gets along well, and follows us. We need to be very careful not to make mistakes, and I firmly believe in that. Then it depends on what the market offers us and what we can do. But we must get everything right from a human perspective.
