Giampaolo keeping his guard up: “Samp must be on top form, regardless of the table”

“The league table doesn’t matter.”

This was Marco Giampaolo’s main message in his first pre-match news conference of 2018: he wants his players to avoid underestimating Benevento, despite their being rooted to the bottom of Serie A.

“We need to be at our best,” the coach explained. “Sampdoria need to acknowledge how they differ from us and win all our individual battles.

“In a way, this game brings the curtain down on the first half of the season, because we’ll be on 19 games with the Roma match still to play. I’ll give you an assessment after the game, as we’ll have some time off then.

“Sampdoria are an idea put into practice,” Giampaolo continued. “We’ve been implementing a technical project for a year and a half now that rules out playing with the handbrake on. We must consolidate this mentality.”

The gaffer wrapped up his conference with a final warning not to take Saturday’s opposition lightly.

“[Roberto] De Zerbi is a talented coach, young and full of ideas,” he concluded. “They’re active in the transfer market and look alive and well. They play positive football. At the very least, we have to match their desire to play well.”