Following the 2-2 draw at the Stade de Tourbillon, Mattia Croci-Torti emphasises the value of the point earned by his FC Lugano side against FC Sion. A late equaliser that allows the Bianconeri to maintain a two-point lead over the Valais side and go into the final matchday with their fate still in their own hands.
THE VALUE OF THE DRAW
The Bianconeri manager begins by highlighting the significance of the result, in a match where the objective was clear: to try to win, but above all to prevent Sion from overtaking them in the table: “My final words to the team today were: this is a match we must try to win by any means necessary, but above all, we cannot afford to lose. We couldn’t let Sion go ahead of us, because we want our fate in our own hands.”
A concept that Croci-Torti immediately links to the next match, the last of the season and the last at Cornaredo: “Our fate now lies at Cornaredo, with our fans, in our great stadium. And we’re going into it with a two-point lead.”
The manager makes no secret, however, of his regret at not having sealed European qualification: “It would have been better to celebrate today, but we have to be realistic. Sion are a strong side this year and have always shown that.”
THE PERFORMANCE
The draw came at the end of a game of two halves. Lugano played a top-class first half, took the lead through Koutsias and set themselves up to control the match. In the second half, however, Sion changed the tempo, capitalised on moments of chance and turned the result around before Papadopoulos’s late equaliser.
Croci-Torti acknowledged the difficulty of the situation following the 1-1 draw, but also highlighted the team’s ability to stay in the game until the very end: “We’ve started the last two matches well, taken the lead, then conceded a goal, and for ten minutes today we were completely in trouble too. We need to stay calmer even if we concede goals.”
This also leads to a reflection on managing key moments in the match: “We need to stay focused, stay in the game, and not give the opposition too many chances, as we did today in the second half. But matches last ninety minutes, and in the end there was that decisive moment we wanted at all costs.”
THE
TEAM’S CHARACTER The late goal confirms the bianconeri’s ability to fight until the very end, even in the most difficult moments. For Croci-Torti, the draw is significant given the context in which it came, against a team brimming with confidence and in front of a stadium buzzing with enthusiasm: “To draw like this in Sion, against a team that hadn’t lost in thirteen matches and had won five in a row in front of their own fans, with all that euphoria, means we clung on until the very end with every ounce of energy. A great display of character.”
HEADING INTO THE FINAL MATCH AT CORNAREDO
Attention now turns to Sunday, when Lugano will host Basel on the final day of the Brack Super League and in the last match at Cornaredo. A match that will decide the bianconeri’s European qualification and which Croci-Torti approaches with a clear message, directed also at the club’s supporters: “We’re incredibly motivated; we need to have a fire inside us that they don’t have. We must do our stadium proud, a place where I’ve spent so many years and where so many fans have supported and helped this team. We’ve reached the final dance. We need everyone; they must carry us forward.”
Croci-Torti’s words thus accompany Lugano into the final fixture of the season. The draw at Sion postpones any verdict, but leaves the bianconeri in control of their own destiny: on Sunday, at Cornaredo, the final step will be required.