Sarri: ‘Zaccagni not at 100 per cent, but Lazio prefer to start him’

Maurizio Sarri explains why Mattia Zaccagni starts for Lazio against Fiorentina despite ‘not being at 100 per cent’ with Patric again picked in a surprising midfield role.

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It kicks off at the Stadio Artemio Franchi at 19.45 UK time (20.45 CEST).

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens on the Liveblog.

There are some surprises in the starting XI this evening, because Zaccagni and Patric were only expected to be fit enough for the bench, yet they are thrown straight into the line-up.

Sarri outlines Lazio decisions

“Zaccagni is not at 100 per cent yet,” confessed Sarri to DAZN Italia.

“In fact, introducing him during the second half might’ve created us some problems in measuring out the substitutions, so we decided to start him and see how long he can last.”

Patric is a defender, but has in recent weeks become the first choice midfielder in the absence of players like Adam Marusic, Daniel Maldini, Ivan Provedel, Mario Gila, Samuel Gigot and Nicolò Rovella.

“Danilo Cataldi is not in great shape, so we preferred to use Patric and allow Cataldi the time to make a full recovery. Hopefully he will be back next week,” added Sarri.

This is a very big game for Fiorentina, as with a win they would open up an eight-point lead over the relegation zone with six rounds left to play.

“That is of no interest to us, we’ve just got to focus on continuing along our path, giving everything to the last minute of the last game. I hope the team will show that attitude again this evening.”

Sarri is notoriously a fan of cycling, so did he watch the iconic Paris-Roubaix race yesterday?

“I had training in the morning, which was very tough with 10 players out of action, but I watched the end on the train.”