FC Lugano beat Grasshopper 4–1 at the Letzigrund, turning around the deficit they had fallen into during a difficult first half. At the end of the match, Mattia Croci-Torti highlighted, above all, the team’s reaction, as they managed to rediscover their quality, concentration and spirit after the break.
THE REACTION AFTER THE BREAK
The bianconeri manager acknowledged the difficulties encountered in the first half of the match, during which FC Lugano struggled to impose their style of play, partly due to the weather conditions: “We weren’t able to get into the game as we’d hoped and find our rhythm. It’s very hot today and even I found it hard to direct the team from the touchline, something that rarely happens to me. We’re only stronger than Grasshopper when we manage to bring our qualities to bear on the pitch: if they don’t come to the fore, we struggle and end up with first halves like today’s.”
Despite going behind, Croci-Torti kept his cool during the half-time break and urged his players to put in a performance more in line with their potential: “These are the sort of matches I’ve seen many times before following a midweek fixture. At half-time, I remain very calm and simply tell the team that this isn’t the standard we need and that I know they’re capable of. If we want to stay up there with the others, we need to start showing it.”
The response came immediately after the break, with the bianconeri scoring four goals to complete the comeback: “We came back onto the pitch with a different spirit and a different level of focus. Apart from the contribution from the bench, I must congratulate everyone because we saw a great Lugano in the second half.”
THE CONTRIBUTION OF THE SUBSTITUTES
One of the key factors in the match was the contribution of the players who came on as substitutes. Cimignani scored a brace, Pihlström netted his first goal for the bianconeri and Behrens boosted the team’s attacking threat: “The substitutes’ bench was important, but it’s not the only thing that makes the difference. We need to rotate the squad to have fresher players when the time is right. Today I decided to start without Behrens, and in the second half he too gave us that little bit extra we needed.”
Croci-Torti also highlighted Dereck Moncada, who scored the equaliser and his first goal in an FC Lugano shirt: “In the first half, I played Moncada in a position that isn’t his natural one, and it showed, because he wasn’t able to perform as I’d like. In the second half, however, playing in his usual position, he did exactly what I asked of him.”
AUTOMATIC MOVEMENTS AND MENTALITY
According to Croci-Torti, the attacking output in recent matches confirms the development of automatic movements and the whole team’s willingness to get involved in the build-up: “The automatic movements are quite clear. Even today, I don’t need to change the system, just swap a few players. The mentality is right, and everyone wants to play a key role in attack too: it’s a quality I’m coming to appreciate more and more.”
The number of forwards fielded is therefore not the decisive factor in creating danger: “It’s not the number of forwards that makes the difference. Even those playing further back need to time their runs correctly to get involved and set the pace, but to achieve that, training is needed.”
Croci-Torti’s words thus set the tone for FC Lugano ahead of their next fixture: on Thursday at 8.30 pm, the bianconeri host NSÍ Runavík at the AIL Arena for the first leg of the third qualifying round of the UEFA Conference League.