Cagliari manager Davide Nicola spoke to the media following his team’s loss to Bologna, acknowledging the quality of their opponents while highlighting areas for improvement in his own squad’s performance.
Nicola began by assessing the match: “We weren’t very precise in our passing and in attacking from the defensive line. We conceded two goals where we played our part. I look at the mistakes we make and analyze them. We lacked concreteness. However, Bologna is an opponent with great quality. We believed in it, and that’s important to me.”
When asked about Cagliari’s lack of quality, Nicola pointed to fatigue as a factor: “Fatigue played its part. It was the third game in a few days, and we played with ten men for over an hour in Udine. The choice of the lineup was dictated by the need to avoid running out of steam after half an hour. Credit to Bologna, though we could have found the goal earlier.”
Addressing the similarity between the second goal conceded and one from a previous match, Nicola emphasized the need for continuous improvement: “We must build our identity game by game. We need to keep improving without stopping.”
Nicola also explained his decision to play Gaetano in an unusual position: “Luvumbo had played a lot, and I opted to place him in that position. He has occupied that position in the past. He has the quality to do it.”
Regarding Prati’s return and apparent struggles, Nicola defended his selection: “He hadn’t played for a long time. We can’t always play the same players. We risk running out of steam. From this point of view, I had to ration our energy.”
The manager concluded by expressing faith in his forwards: “Both Luvumbo and Lapadula are not natural goalscorers, as last year shows. It’s not right to highlight that these guys aren’t scoring. We need to believe in them, the goals will come.”
