Maurizio Sarri has explained why he has limited the amount of training his players will do before tomorrow’s Carabao Cup final against Manchester City
With the heavy defeat at the Etihad still fresh in the memory, and following hard on the heels of a nervy start to Thursday’s victory over Malmo, Sarri has opted for a single day of training in the build-up to the Wembley showpiece.
‘For 30 minutes I saw a team very worried, without confidence,’ he reflected on the most recent Europa League win.
‘I don’t want to press them, I want to keep their minds very free. We will prepare for the match only on Saturday, because I didn’t like our minds in the first 30 minutes. I want to see something more free.
‘We prepare for the match in 60 minutes, no more. The quantity is not important.’
Staying in it
Sarri considers our best performance under his management to be the first half against Tottenham in the semi-final second leg of this competition, and thinks our two league meetings against Manchester City this season have not accurately reflected the difference between the sides.
‘We were lucky in the first match because we were in trouble in the first half. We scored in the last minute of the first half, and then the match changed.
‘We were unlucky in the second match, because we started very well for five minutes then we conceded a stupid goal and we were unable to react. It was a disaster.
‘The truth is in the middle. The 2-0 two months ago is not true; the 6-0 two weeks ago is not true.
‘For us in this match it’s very important to stay in the match for a long time, and then we will be able to do something.’
