Zdenek Zeman was not surprised by Cagliari’s 4-1 win over Inter. “I was always convinced this team could play football.”
The Sardinians had been bottom of the table with one point and three consecutive defeats, but earned a shock 4-1 victory at San Siro.
Zdenek Zeman was not surprised by Cagliari’s 4-1 win over Inter. “I was always convinced this team could play football.”
The Sardinians had been bottom of the table with one point and three consecutive defeats, but earned a shock 4-1 victory at San Siro.
There had even been rumours a defeat here would prompt Zeman’s dismissal, but this result certainly changed the atmosphere.
“I was always convinced this team could play football. We came here to play, in other games we didn’t manage it, but these players have quality and I hope we can always play with this intensity,” he told Sky Sport Italia.
“We were in good physical shape before, but we were more worried about defending than attacking and didn’t move the ball around quickly enough. Today we had more spaces to run into and took the game to Inter.”
Victor Ibarbo went on a mazy run to set up one of Albin Ekdal’s three goals after Zeman criticised his approach.
“I want Ibarbo to attack, as even at the World Cup with Colombia he didn’t get near the box. He has quality and I want him to run at the goal.
“Can my style of football still work? We beat Inter at San Siro, so that’s enough for me. Some people said we were relegated yesterday, but we came here and beat a team that has Scudetto ambitions. Now I want us to repeat that performance.
“My role is to give the team a style of football. Again, Ibarbo was basically in midfield last season, so the team was not accustomed to going on the attack and targeting the goal. It took a little time for them to understand my approach.”