Prandelli Bitter At Coppa Italia Defeat

Fiorentina coach Cesare Prandelli was left highly disappointed with his side's display in the Coppa Italia defeat to Torino (1-0) at the Artemio Franchi stadium. The coach sincerely cared about the competition and going out at such an early stage left a bitter taste in his mouth.

"In the first half we made a mistake and were punished, and after conceding everything became more difficult," he commented. "We tried with more strikers but did not manage to score. I'd say that is the analysis of our defeat."

The team played with Alberto Gilardino and Adrian Mutu up front but the coach would rather have played with Giampaolo Pazzini and Pablo Osvaldo, who were both out injured.

"We had important absences like Pazzini and Osvaldo, we would have needed them, Mutu and Gilardino were playing their fourth match in ten days and they got tired," Prandelli continued.

"We were a bit slow and did very little with the ball at our feet.

"Aside from being disappointed with our elimination from the Coppa Italia, I am also unhappy we were unable to give continuity to our recent results. I'm also worried that this defeat will cause a psychological decline."

Next Sunday the Viola travel to Genoa to face Sampdoria in what has always been a tricky fixture for them.

Danilo Pochini