Praet: Bologna strike a thank you to Samp fans

Having made a key contribution in Sampdoria’s win over Bologna, with a goal in front of the North stand, where he’s scored all his goals for the club, Dennis Praet cut a satisfied figure.

“I’m glad to have signed to new contract. I’ve said Samp is my home. I feel very good here and I’m pleased with the trust Samp and the fans have shown in me. My goal is a thank you to them,” he said.

“I’m pleased to have scored, but mostly because of the win, which was important for us.”

With Doria’s win bringing an end to a poor run of form, the midfielder added: “I don’t believe the midfield was the problem for us. We’ve conceded too many goals in recent games; I think we needed to work and improve our organisation across the board. We’re more organised now and we scored four goals.

“It won’t be easy to qualify for Europe – we need to improve to get there. That’s the road we need to go down. The match against SPAL will be tough. It’s a big ask to get to the final [of the Coppa Italia] but we want to go as far as we can.”