UDINE. Luca Gotti’s face at the final whistle of the match against Roma and then also at the press conference was a mask. If he had been able to, the calm and polite Udinese coach would have eaten the microphone in front of a couple of impeccable readings of the match by the sidelines who told of a Udinese that for a while never tried. “It’s not like that, because before and after the Roma goal we had two almost photocopied chances”.
Then in the second half the game changed completely due to the decline of Roma and the growth of Udinese, also thanks to the addition of young and fresh forces. Here, this is the point on which to insist: the beautiful youth that animates this team. At one point Gotti had three 2002 (Samardzic, Udogie and Soppy), two ’98 (Beto and Makengo) on the field and none of them betrayed expectations. This does not mean that you have to let them all play immediately, but one at a time in a tested context and that this does work.
On Thursday night at the Olimpico, Udogie, who physically held up against Zaniolo, came up as a surprise (but only because he was back from a couple of weeks off). “As far as I’m concerned, he did very well”, the coach’s words after the race. The same can be said for Soppy.
In retrospect, as much as Molina did, it is all too easy to say that it would have been better to see the French player on the pitch from the start. But it should also be noted that the Udinese of the second half had a different spirit than the one that at the beginning had to deal with the departure of Roma. The third 2002 thrown into the fray at the Olimpico is that Samardzic who had decided the match with Spezia: the German does not touch the ball, he caresses it. Billy Costacurta on Sky was unbalanced on his account: “We are facing a future champion”.
The coach himself is also aware of this, and by extending the discussion to the squad available, he made a reflection that puts him in tune with what is the philosophy of the company. “Udinese – said the coach – through the purchase of many young players has guaranteed the future, but now it is up to us to try to reach this future as soon as possible”.
Gotti is aware that a coach thrives on results. There are two consecutive defeats and the next opponents before the break are called Fiorentina and Sampdoria. Moving the rankings helps you work and grow better. He will have to use the slingbar of the pharmacist Luca. Insert the millennium at the right moments without causing the eleven to lose balance and competitiveness.
The defeat against Roma hurt the team, the coach and the fans because the fairest result (dear Mourinho) would have been a draw. At the same time, however, this defeat was absolutely not like that, just to make a comparison, of the sip of the year, always at the Olimpico with Roma, or like those of last season’s final. There are more solutions on the bench and the five changes can change the challenges even in the Biancone homeout.
With the very young and with the less young like Beto and Makengo. The French midfielder, who compared to his teammates already has a season in Serie A in his luggage, is slowly growing in conviction and personality. The Portuguese striker is proving he can withstand the impact with the Italian league. A defect? In the first three appearances, all as a substitute, he was still zero in the number of shots on goal. It does not depend only on him, but also on the team that must put him in the conditions to finish.
As for the Under 23, let’s not forget that Perez is on the bench, the only one to whom Gotti has not yet “given” his debut in Serie A. A bit because the coach trusts the tried and tested trio Becao-Nuytinck- Samir, a bit ‘because obviously he doesn’t see the boy ready yet.
.