Ranieri: “Sassuolo a chance to get going again”

Sampdoria must use their anger after last week’s defeat at Lazio as added motivation when they host Sassuolo on Sunday, says Claudio Ranieri.

“We go into this game feeling angry after a bad defeat last week. It was the only game since I came in where I wasn’t at all happy with our performance because we didn’t play as a team. Now we have to turn the page and move on.”

Ranieri had praise for his opposite number Roberto De Zerbi but talked up the importance of what is effectively a six-pointer, with Sassuolo coming to Genoa on 22 points – three above Samp – after beating Torino last weekend.

“Every game is important for us at the moment but this one against Sassuolo is even more so because they’re a direct rival of ours. They’re a team that runs like clockwork – they know what they want and how to achieve it. We’ll need to produce a great performance. We must be careful, patient and fast.”

The boss went on to comment on the latest addition to the squad, Lorenzo Tonelli, and the transfer window in general.

“Tonelli is looking good. He was a part of this squad last season and it’s as if he never left.

“The club know that if it’s possible to improve the squad, good, but as I’ve always said I’m more than happy with the players I’ve got here. The president is doing everything he can to make me happy.”

Finally, Ranieri expressed his gratitude to the Blucerchiati faithful and urged his men to disregard off-field matters so as to focus exclusively on the task at hand.

“The fans are priceless. There are no other words to describe them. When I joined I asked them to give us their unconditional support and that’s what they’ve done every single time. I thank them in advance for what they’ll give us this Sunday too.

“Right now the players need to focus 100% on their football because we have a very important goal to achieve, which is to ensure our top-flight status. Anything happening off the field should be of no interest to us. We simply need to focus on our jobs and on getting results because we’re still in a tricky situation. There are other people whose job it is to deal with club matters.”