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Raffaele Palladino, coach of Fiorentina, spoke at the end of the 2-1 victory away to Celje in the first leg of the Conference League quarterfinals.

Fiorentina beats Celje 2-1 in the first leg of the Conference League quarterfinals, and therefore takes a small but significant advantage ahead of the return leg at home next Thursday. The Viola take the lead in the 27th minute with Ranieri, double their advantage in the 62nd minute with a penalty from Mandragora, but shortly after the Slovenians shorten the gap with Delaurer-Chaubet also from the penalty spot. Nonetheless, an important result for Palladino’s team, which will rely on the support of the Franchi crowd and their superior technical level to advance to the semifinals.

RAFFAELE PALLADINO’S CELEBRATION (PHOTO BY SALVATORE FORNELLI)

Celje-Fiorentina 1-2: Palladino’s Post-Match Comments

At the end of the match, Fiorentina coach Raffaele Palladino spoke to Sky Sport. Below are his comments.

Match Analysis
“I didn’t notice the divot on Mandragora’s penalty, if we analyze the match, it was a good performance. I got excellent responses from everyone, today the team approached the game in the right way. We knew Celje’s strengths. The regret is conceding that goal, at 2-0 we need to understand the game situation better and be better at playing simpler. Perhaps a bit of inexperience caused us to lose that ball. It’s a shame, everything is open and of course we want to progress knowing we face a good team”.

Yellow Cards for the Suspended Players (Moreno, Zaniolo, Dodo)
“I wasn’t angry about the yellow cards, because it’s part of football. Probably Dodo’s could have been avoided, but whoever plays will perform well. Zaniolo had a good game, fought with the team both as a forward and a midfielder, but I’m happy with everyone else, even Folorunsho adapted to a role that’s not his, Moreno was booked and I preferred to take him off”.

Midfield Mistakes
“Adli hadn’t played for two and a half months, today he started in a very hot atmosphere with high intensity. It’s normal to make some mistakes in passing, but I’m happy with his performance, he even exceeded expectations. Making a few mistakes in distribution is expected because their pressure was intense”.

Maximum Focus in Both Competitions
“We want to be ambitious, we are in good physical and mental shape. We want to go all the way, this is the time of the season when the players have a lot of enthusiasm”.

On the New Formation
“We have changed our principles a bit, we used to defend deeper because the team felt the need. Now we feel more secure, we are reaping the benefits and we have a lot of quality in midfield, as well as strong defenders and talented attackers. We have found the right path, the work from the first day of training camp has brought us here and we must follow it until the end of the season”.

Below are the Viola coach’s statements in the press conference.

Positive Attitude of the Team
“I am satisfied, I saw a good performance against a team that has its values and great enthusiasm at their stadium. They hadn’t lost in Europe for nine games, which adds value. I got excellent responses from everyone, the regret is conceding that goal at 2-0. We should have been smarter at managing the ball, making fewer touches and controlling the game. It’s a shame about that goal, but everything is open and at home we want to progress to the next round”.”I saw sacrifice from everyone, against a team with values. We had maximum respect for Celje, I repeat, it’s a shame for the 2-1 but I am satisfied with the performance”.

On Celje
“We watched 12 Celje games and the coach is very good, he makes the team play well. They have great individuals in midfield, with quality and pace. They have excellent players”.

What he liked most today
“The responses. Especially from players who hadn’t played much lately, like Folorunsho who played in a position that’s not his as a defender, both on the left and right, Zaniolo had a great game in both phases, Adli who hadn’t played for months. And I’m happy with the team’s maturity, today we were mature without ever falling apart. The team has reached an important level”.

On Mandragora
“Rolando is dear to me. In the first phase of the Conference group stage, he was out for quite a bit, lacked continuity. And I was impressed by his ability to stay out and work intensely, being a leader even though he didn’t have playing time. Usually, people get down and need motivation, but that didn’t happen with him. He is an example of knowing how to wait and now he is reaping the rewards of that. I admire the player and the person, he proved himself to be a great man first. He did it all by himself, I had nothing to do with it. He is probably having the best season of his career and he deserves it”.

Referee’s Card Management
“I never talk about referees, I liked him and he managed the game well. Maybe there were a few more cards in our favor, but I can’t say he had a bad performance”.

On De Gea
“A champion, a phenomenon. Essential for us, he gives us experience and security, he is our goalkeeper and we hold him close. He helps our defenders, he gave us a lot of help today too”.

On Moreno
“I have to thank him, because he didn’t play his usual role. We were in trouble on the wings, Gosens is out and Parisi had an ankle problem so he wasn’t at his best, we had to adapt two defenders, Dodo needed a rest. Moreno did his best, then he came off because he was booked. He had a good first half, struggled a bit with the long balls but then he came through”.