Former Arezzo striker Antonio Floro Flores, who played under Maurizio Sarri, was excited by Lazio’s appointment of the 62-year-old Italian coach.
Speaking in an interview with Italian media outlet La Lazio Siamo Noi earlier today, the 37-year-old Italian first compared Sarri to the Biancocelesti’s previous coach, Simone Inzaghi, who left Rome after five years in order to join Inter.
He is the opposite of Inzaghi. The way he plays is different, the character is different.
In recent years he has brought great results in all the clubs he has been at. Lazio have made a great signing and I think they have improved.
He commented on the difficulties that the Biancocelesti face this summer in trying to get a suitable squad for Sarri’s 4-3-3 system, a large departure from Inzaghi’s 3-5-2.
I think it’s always a challenge for a coach. I’m doing this job now. Sarri comes to a place where there is a totally different way of playing compared to his ideas. Inzaghi played with a 3-5-2, Sarri arrives and sets up the game in a totally different way.
He’s someone who always wants to play football, who never throws the ball away, who gives an important identity to the team, as he did with Napoli.
He and Lotito are two people with very strong characters, it will be interesting to understand their relationship. Sometimes you have to make compromises.
The former Napoli and Udinese forward then recounted some memories he has of Sarri from their time together at Arezzo.
There are many. When he arrived at Arezzo there was little to laugh about. He improved over the years, he perfected himself, but he was always someone who dedicated a lot of love and desire to this job.
Before, the way of playing in Italy was very different, now you try to build up. He has come out, he was already doing this type of football in the past years. I had a great relationship with him, he always told me things to my face.
He doesn’t mince his words. He would say to me ‘you’re an asshole, it’s not possible that a player like you is still in Serie B’.
I really appreciated that, because a coach doesn’t always tell you the truth. He was always very straightforward, when he came in, I got over it. We kept in touch until recently.
He touched on how Sarri’s appointment is a good opportunity for Lazio to revitalize the squad a little this summer, building the squad around the stars.
I think it’s the right time to make a revolution at Lazio. There are players who have been there for a long time. It’s right to keep those who want to stay. Those who want to leave should change.
Players like Milinkovic-Savic, Immobile, Luis Alberto and Leiva will be able to give him a big hand, he makes players like that perform at their best.
Finally, Floro Flores touched on the Roman club’s decision to appoint Sarri and how he hopes that they avoid the same mistakes that Juventus made with the 62-year-old Italian coach.
You have to understand the ideas and the choices of the club, I think they know what they asked for when they hired Sarri.
I hope they don’t make the same mistake as Juventus. They signed him hoping he would play great football with players who didn’t suit his style.
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