Hellas Verona vs US Sassuolo Calcio preview - Mandorlini backing Cacia
Posted Saturday, September 14, 2013 by PA
Hellas Verona head coach Andrea Mandorlini believes his team can overcome the absence of veteran striker Luca Toni when they welcome Sassuolo on Sunday.
The 2006 World Cup winner, who struck twice in his side's 2-1 victory over AC Milan on the opening weekend, has failed to recover from the ankle injury he sustained in the subsequent 3-0 defeat at Roma.
Daniele Cacia will take Toni's place and partner Martinho up front.
"Toni is a crucial player for us," Mandorlini said. "But Cacia has done really well.
"I think we have an important attacking potential and we can vary our formation depending on our rivals and on injuries."
Sassuolo coach Eusebio Di Francesco hopes his team can get their campaign off the ground at the Stadio Marc'Antonio Bentegodi but is aware of the challenge his team face.
Despite Sassuolo's failure to beat Hellas in their respective Serie B encounters last season, Di Francesco remains optimistic.
"We travel to Verona knowing that we face a good team but aware that we can compete against them," he said.
"We cannot go into the game with a loser's mentality. We must find the determination we need to make that leap in quality."
Defeats at Torino and against Livorno have left the Serie A newcomers still searching for their first triumph of the season.
Sassuolo will need to give an improved performance having conceded six goals while finding the net just once in their opening two games.
"We need to forget about those two defeats and get it into our heads that we are a good team," Di Francesco added.
"We need to get points."
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