Coach Reflects on Defeat: 'We Didn't Fight in the Right Way'

A bruising defeat to Brentford left the visiting manager with nowhere to hide and no appetite for excuses. His verdict was blunt.

“Bad game. We lost and suffered the difference in the duels. It was the key of this game. We didn't fight in the right way,” he said, laying bare the gulf in intensity. “Maybe credit to them because it's the best quality Brentford have.”

The story of the afternoon was physical. Brentford won the collisions, the second balls, the 50-50s. His side shrank in those moments.

“Our physical condition was not at the right level for all players because many came later after the World Cup and there were many new players in the squad and first XI,” he admitted. “But we have to analyse this game better because we can't play this way in this type of game.”

He didn’t hide his shock.

“I am surprised by the result and performance. I knew we were not in the right condition. We can't find an excuse. I am sorry for the result and performance. We are starting a new project and we couldn't find the principal.”

Key names are clearly short. He pointed to Marcos Senesi, Jan Paul van Hecke and Sandro Tonali as examples of players still chasing fitness.

“Marcos Senesi, Jan Paul van Hecke and Sandro Tonali are not in the best physical condition. We knew that before the game. We have to improve on that and many other things, like organisation and pressing.

“We can improve quickly but first, we have to understand this game better. I know their physical condition and new players but we have to put something more. We had to fight more. Players know I have a lot of confidence in them and we hope to improve quickly.”

No hiding behind transfers

With the performance laid bare, the obvious question came: will more signings fix this?

He pushed back.

“I don't want the excuse that the first XI was not enough to compete and get a result. Brentford's spirit on the pitch was great, it has to be the right example for us.”

The word “spirit” kept coming up. His team, he felt, lacked the edge to match Brentford’s aggression.

“We suffered physically but we knew that before the game. We were not ready to fight the duels. We made a lot of mistakes in the timing of the pressure with Mikey Moore. We arrived too many times late and we lost too many duels to compete with Brentford.”

The apology came again, this time wrapped in a wider view of the project.

“I am sorry for the defeat. I know we have to improve in our physical condition, in the organisation. There were many new players but it was the first game. It's part of our journey. With a lot of new players, we knew we needed soul and style of play to become a team. Today I think there was the soul but we didn't fight in the right way.”

Duels lost, positions wrong

Why so many lost battles? For him, the issue started with structure.

“I believe in my players. Especially in the first half, we were not in the right position to make the right pressure,” he explained. “If you analyse the game, you can see how many duels we lost in the first half when the game went in Brentford's direction.

“We didn't play well. We didn't fight in the right way. Not because we didn't remember the last season. Because these players are good people and with value and memory. But we lost too many duels.”

Even so, he refused to throw his line-up under the bus.

“The first XI should be able to compete normally if the game went in this way. I don't lose confidence in my players and these people. We have to work and improve, analyse the game better and find the improvement.”

Fitness, organisation, and the missing edge

He knows exactly where the work starts.

“We have to analyse this game. We cannot destroy everything because we are working well. Physical condition is not the same for all players because many started the season later.

“I don't want to make excuses but we need to keep improving. We need to find the right spirit to fight but today, it wasn't there. I expected better for sure. I didn't expect this result but I knew the problems we would find today.”

The message was clear: fitness, organisation, pressing, and above all, the will to win duels. The project, as he kept reminding, has only just begun. But in a league that punishes hesitation, how quickly can that “soul” turn into a side ready to fight every ball?