US Sassuolo Calcio vs Fiorentina preview - Pasqual keen to maintain momentum
Posted Saturday, December 21, 2013 by PA
Fiorentina captain Manuel Pasqual has demanded a strong finish to the year from his team-mates when they take on Sassuolo on Sunday.
The Viola go into the match at the Citta del Tricolore stadium on the back of a 3-0 triumph over Bologna.
Last weekend's outcome was Fiorentina's ninth victory of the campaign and lifted Vincenzo Montella's side to fourth place, two points clear of Inter Milan, and they want to maintain their form.
"We want to end the year in the best possible way," Pasqual said to www.acffiorentina.it. "We have one point more than what we had at this stage last season and we want to give continuity to our performances.
"We know we have an opportunity to extend our advantage over Inter this weekend depending on the result of the Milan derby (Sunday night)."
Fiorentina lost 1-0 at Udinese before falling 2-1 at Roma in their last two outings and Pasqual knows his side cannot take Sunday's rivals lightly despite Sassuolo's lowly league position.
"Sassuolo are on paper inferior to us but that doesn't mean they cannot make life difficult for us," Pasqual said. "They are playing at home and they will be very determined to take a good result."
Sassuolo coach Eusebio Di Francesco expects a much improved performance from his players this weekend after Sunday's defensive disaster against Juventus.
Di Francesco's men were thrashed 4-0 by the Serie A leaders and fell to 17th in the standings, just one place and one point clear of the relegation zone.
"Juventus were superior to us and the difference between us and them was night and day," Di Francesco said. "But we cannot be depleted.
"We have to react and focus on our next game.
"To remain above the drop zone heading into the Christmas break would be a big boost in confidence for my players."
Sassuolo will be without captain Francesco Magnarelli, who serves a one-match ban this weekend.
Giuseppe Rossi, who is Serie A's top scorer with 13 goals, will lead Fiorentina's attack.
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