Novara v Lecce

Posted Sunday, March 25, 2012 by PA

Lecce coach Serse Cosmi has urged his side to "remain united" as they prepare for Sunday's game at Novara.

The two relegation battlers go head to head at the Silvio Piola stadium in a must-win match for both sides.

Lecce held Palermo to a 1-1 draw last time out to remain five points adrift of safety.

The Salentini occupy 18th place, one place and three points clear of Novara, so neither team can afford to drop points on Sunday.

Cosmi felt his side had played well against Palermo and now wants them to stick together for the crucial run-in.

He said: "I saw the right determination against Palermo. We must always remember that this is an incredibly tough league and that there is the need to remain united, as every small factor can affect the right balance.

"We have to beat Novara and in order to do that we need to show maximum concentration in this game.

"There are still 30 points to play for and anything is possible."

Rivals Novara are showing no signs of slowing down since the return of coach Attilio Tesser to the hot seat earlier this month.

They followed their 1-0 triumph over Udinese with a 2-0 win at Siena last weekend to keep their hopes of avoiding the drop alive and Tesser has demanded more of the same.

"We are in the crucial stage of the campaign and everyone knows that mistakes can be costly," he said.

"The numbers say there has been an improvement and we've got to be aware of our chances for the sprint finish."

The visitors will be without defender Massimo Oddo and midfielder Christian Obodo, with the former suspended and the latter out injured.