Giampaolo: “An important game against Empoli, and the players know it”

Marco Giampaolo is looking ahead to a significant match against Empoli with further crucial fixtures to come. “From now on, all our matches will be important,” claimed the coach ahead of Saturday’s face-off at the Ferraris. “We have more decisive games to come after this one – and the players know it.”

Empoli are eight points ahead of the Blucerchiati and in a comfortable position in the league, but they won’t want to be brought back into the relegation battle.

“Empoli are built for playing good football because it’s part of their history,” explained Giampaolo. “Aurelio Andreazzoli is a great coach and he has them playing innovative, intelligent, ruthless football. We have to go into the game with the right attitude. We need to be cautious and understand how important this battle is. They have an incredible away record, only losing one of the last eight away games. We’re facing a team who are playing with no pressure and are quite capable of claiming big results.”

A reunion with Empoli brings back happy memories for the coach, who moved to Sampdoria for his first spell after a great season in Tuscany.

“Empoli was a turning point in my career,” the coach recalled. “They were brave enough to hire me from a Serie C club and I’m so grateful for that. But those feelings can be put to one side. When we go out onto the pitch, the only thing I’ll be thinking about is getting three points.

“We’ve worked as normal during the week to prepare for the game as best we can. Now we need to be disciplined to play each game as it comes. We probably won’t always play in the same way but make sure we adapt to each match. We need to get the best out of every player.”