FC Lugano go into the second half of the Super League as leaders - and also want to be at the top at the end of the season. Coach Mattia Croci-Torti, who has now extended his contract, talks to blue Sport about the championship fight.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- FC Lugano is aiming for its first league title since 1949. But Mattia Croci-Torti knows that the competition is also hungry for the title.
- "To become champions, things have to go almost perfectly right to the end," says the Lugano coach in an interview with blue Sport.
- The Ticino team will kick off the second half of the season at home against Basel on Sunday. blue Sport will broadcast the top match live.
For once, Mattia Croci-Torti appears in front of the cameras without a cap. The black cap is the Lugano coach's trademark, but for Swiss Football Night the 42-year-old is dressing up. "I only need the cap at the weekend," smiles Croci-Torti in an interview with blue Sport. Away from the football pitch, he says, it works just as well without it.
The coach has every reason to feel good. Lugano are not only in the last 16 of the Conference League, but also top of the Super League after the first half of the season. Most experts see the Ticino side as the top favorites for the championship title.
And how does Croci-Torti himself see it? "We know that we have a chance of winning the title. But to do that, we have to play almost perfectly right to the end. Our opponents are hungry too. Whoever has more hunger than the others will be able to make the difference."
Second-round opener against Basel
The preparation for the second half of the season with the training camp in Marbella was "top", says the coach. Even if there was no victory in the test matches against Sturm Graz (1:2) and Cologne (3:3). "Those were two good opponents, so we've already had two real tests with the necessary aggression," says Croci-Torti. Things get really serious again on Sunday - the top match against FC Basel will take place at the Cornaredo.
In the meantime, the question of the coach's future has been resolved. On Thursday, Croci-Torti extended his contract, which was due to expire in the summer, by three years until 2028. "Lugano is a top team in Switzerland, we have everything here and in two years we'll have a new stadium," the coveted coach told blue Sport.
Although he also has certain dreams, he obviously sees his future in his home country for a while yet. Croci-Torti: "We have the ambition to win every game and are no longer satisfied with 5th place. I'm still very hungry."