Coach Demands More Fight After Disappointing Loss to Brentford
The scoreline hurt. The manner of it hurt more.
After watching his side bullied by Brentford, the coach did not bother dressing it up. He called it what it was: a bad game, lost in the duels and in the details.
“We lost and suffered the difference in the duels. It was the key of this game,” he admitted, blunt and clearly frustrated. “We didn't fight in the right way. Maybe credit to them because it's the best quality Brentford have.”
This wasn’t about tactics on a whiteboard. It was about legs, timing, and a team that looked half a step short all over the pitch.
Fitness issues and a fractured rhythm
The coach pointed straight at physical condition as a core problem. Several players joined late after the World Cup, others are still bedding in, and the starting XI looked like a group at different stages of pre-season.
“Our physical condition was not at the right level for all players because many came later after the World Cup and there were many new players in the squad and first XI,” he said. “We have to analyse this game better because we can't play this way in this type of game.”
He didn’t hide his surprise.
“I am surprised by the result and performance. I knew we were not in the right condition. We can't find an excuse. I am sorry for the result and performance. We are starting a new project and we couldn't find the principal.”
Key figures such as Marcos Senesi, Jan Paul van Hecke and Sandro Tonali are still short of their best shape. The staff knew that going in, but Brentford exposed it ruthlessly.
“Marcos Senesi, Jan Paul van Hecke and Sandro Tonali are not in the best physical condition. We knew that before the game. We have to improve on that and many other things, like organisation and pressing.”
Organisation, pressing, and lost battles
The pattern was clear from the first half. Brentford snapped into challenges, won second balls, and forced mistakes. His team arrived late, both in body and in mind.
“We suffered physically but we knew that before the game. We were not ready to fight the duels,” he said. “We made a lot of mistakes in the timing of the pressure with Mikey Moore. We arrived too many times late and we lost too many duels to compete with Brentford.”
The coach insisted this wasn’t about character or a group forgetting last season’s standards. It was about positioning, structure, and being repeatedly second best when the ball was there to be won.
“Especially in the first half, we were not in the right position to make the right pressure. If you analyse the game, you can see how many duels we lost in the first half when the game went in Brentford's direction.
“We didn't play well. We didn't fight in the right way. Not because we didn't remember the last season. Because these players are good people and with value and memory. But we lost too many duels.”
No excuses, no panic
He refused to hide behind the idea that the squad is incomplete or that new signings are needed before they can compete.
On recruitment, his stance was clear: “I don't want the excuse that the first XI was not enough to compete and get a result. Brentford's spirit on the pitch was great, it has to be the right example for us.”
He also pushed back against any temptation to tear the project up after one bruising afternoon.
“We have to analyse this game. We cannot destroy everything because we are working well. Physical condition is not the same for all players because many started the season later.
“I don't want to make excuses but we need to keep improving. We need to find the right spirit to fight but today, it wasn't there. I expected better for sure. I didn't expect this result but I knew the problems we would find today.”
Belief in the XI, but demands for change
Asked whether this starting line-up would change in the coming weeks, he defended the group but not the performance.
“The first XI should be able to compete normally if the game went in this way. I don't lose confidence in my players and these people. We have to work and improve, analyse the game better and find the improvement.”
He stressed that the foundations of the project remain intact. The issue is speed: how quickly this mix of late arrivals and new faces can turn into a team with a clear style and a hardened edge.
“We can improve quickly but first, we have to understand this game better. I know their physical condition and new players but we have to put something more. We had to fight more. Players know I have a lot of confidence in them and we hope to improve quickly.”
There was one line that cut through everything else: “With a lot of new players, we knew we needed soul and style of play to become a team. Today I think there was the soul but we didn't fight in the right way.”
The soul is there, he insists. The fight, the timing, the duels? Those will decide how fast this “new project” stops talking about potential and starts delivering results.
