Collecchio, 5 December 2020 – With Parma’s tenth league fixture of the season coming up against Benevento tomorrow, Coach Fabio Liverani had the following to say during his pre-match press conference today:
“I believe the victory over Genoa was a significant one. I also think it was achieved following an excellent performance: we did very well for 60-65 minutes and could have finished the first half even further ahead. It was certainly what we’d been looking for in terms of our intensity, how we all worked towards the same goal and the way we pressed. We can’t be certain that we’ve found the right path after a single match, there’s an important game to play tomorrow and we need to build on the progress we made on Monday.”
What kind of game will it be tomorrow? “As was the case in our last fixture, there’s no rush to try to win the game and leave ourselves susceptible to counter-attacks. We need to maintain a balance when we’re on the ball and have the patience to find the right gap. We’ve worked on certain situations and we’ll see if we got it right out on the pitch. It’ll be like a chess game tomorrow. They’re doing well and enjoying a good spell after winning in Florence and drawing with Juventus. We need to consolidate what we did in Genoa and perform well as a unit.”
Matches held behind closed doors allow coaches to be heard more: “I believe that this is the case, yes. I experience matches in this way and try to provide the lads with support. For me, given that we haven’t been able to work a lot together, playing behind closed doors is an advantage.
“I’ve always been a positive person, I think that difficulties can lead to discoveries which, over the course of the season, can bring advantages. During the week, I’ve seen the right spirit from the players.
“Scozzarella? It’s still early doors, but it’s true that that role in the middle of the park is vital for us in terms of playing how we want to. Matteo was called upon after a few problems and not being able to train on a consistent basis, and he responded. This doesn’t mean that Brugman, Cyprien, Hernani or others won’t have chances, but Matteo did what we were looking for: he showed me that I can count on him in that position. I think I’m fortunate to be able to train a group where I have many potential solutions available to me. It’s great that there’s healthy competition for places, this is certainly an advantage.”
The Coach continued: “Brunetta came in from Argentina, where there had been no league football since February. He wasn’t prepared when he arrived in Italy and also had to overcome COVID-19. We believe in him and he offers an alternative in attack: he can play between the lines and thrives on one-on-one situations, while he’s also more of a player who prefers short passes rather than a direct style of play. He’ll get his chance and will be an important asset for the side with the five substitutions we have available.”
“On Monday, we tried to press high up the pitch: Karamoh, Gervinho and Cornelius all did some excellent work, allowing the team to remain very high. Despite the fact that Karamoh did very well, he wasn’t always particularly good on the ball. Nevertheless, he allowed us to stretch play and also gave us balance. He was involved in the action, but we expect more from him, especially when he’s in possession.
“Both Cornelius and Inglese haven’t really been able to train on a consistent basis. Cornelius had a really good campaign last year, while Roberto wasn’t able to play a lot. In this respect, he’s slightly further behind. However, given how he’s working and the commitment he’s showing, he’s on the right track. He’s improving every week and becoming sharper. I’m currently selecting one of the two to take to the pitch, but that’s not to say that, should there be the optimal conditions to do so, they couldn’t play together.”
