Mario Gila reflected on his recent lack of playing time at Lazio, the renewed trust placed in him and his work under Maurizio Sarri.
The 23-year-old Spaniard was heavily linked with a move away from the Italian capital in the summer but ultimately remained a part of Sarri’s squad heading into the new season.
Gila failed to make a single appearance for the first three months of the campaign but was finally given a chance in Lazio’s 2-1 loss to Salernitana. He followed that up with a better performance in the 2-0 win over Celtic, starting to gain the trust of Sarri.
Speaking in the matchday programme (via La Lazio Siamo Noi), Gila first discussed how it feels to break back into the Lazio squad.
After not playing for a long time, it’s very nice to find confidence again. After months of hard work and good and not so good days, there comes that moment when the light comes back and I’m very happy to be able to take advantage of these opportunities.
He spoke about how it feels to have qualified for the knockout stages of the Champions League.
We are very happy to have achieved this prestigious goal. Against Celtic we gave an important performance, full of personality and courage. We were present in every moment of the match, which is what we lacked in the league.
The Spaniard looked ahead to the clash with Cagliari.
We know that we are facing a physical team, who have achieved great results in the last few games. I expect a lively Cagliari, but we will have to exploit the Olimpico factor and the motivation that Tuesday’s victory gave us.
The 23-year-old touched on his work under Sarri.
Sarri is helping me in many things. He has given me a hand in improving a lot from a tactical point of view, helping me to understand what to do in moments of the match, based on what happens over the course of the 90 minutes and not alone.
A quality that usually comes with maturity, I feel I have achieved it thanks to the coach and all his staff. At the moment I am working hard to improve my defensive phase, even if I feel I have the characteristics to also score some goals.
Finally, Gila discussed his admiration of Lazio legend Alessandro Nesta.
The defender I’ve always had in mind since I arrived is Nesta. I’ve always liked him a lot, he was an idol for all the fans and a point of reference for each of his teammates. I’m happy to play in the same team as him club.
