Ranieri previews the derby: “We need to fight for every ball”

Claudio Ranieri has called for Sampdoria to display all of their fighting spirit as they look to make it six wins from seven games with a victory over local rivals Genoa on Wednesday evening.

“The derby is the derby – it’s not time for us to take stock yet,” said the Doria boss, speaking on Tuesday afternoon. “I’m expecting to face a determined team. They were going strong before the lockdown then ran into some difficulty, but they’re on the rise again now so we’ll need to produce the best possible account of ourselves to get a good result. We need to fight for every ball and show the same mentality we have done in our last few games.”

In addition to the city bragging rights, the match against Genoa offers Doria a chance to improve their league standing as a gruelling season draws to a close.

“Usually a derby is the easiest game for a coach to prepare for because the fans make it clear how important it is,” said Ranieri. “It’ll be different this time without fans and that’s a shame, but we want to end the season on a high. The four remaining games are a test for all of us.”