Parma vs Sassuolo preview - Donadoni predicts turnaround

Posted Friday, October 24, 2014 by PA

Parma coach Roberto Donadoni is confident his side can end their dismal run of form when they take on Sassuolo on Saturday.

The Ducale club have won just one and lost six of their opening seven games.

Last weekend's 1-0 defeat at Atalanta was Parma's fourth straight loss and dropped the Gialloblu to the bottom of the standings.

It is a far cry from the team that finished sixth in Serie A last season and Donadoni is starting to feel the heat.

"As long as I am coach of Parma I will try to give my best," Donadoni said. "I believe we can turn this situation around.

"We must roll up our sleeves because our results suggest that we are not up to the task and hence, we need to give more than we have done so far."

Parma have failed to keep a clean sheet and have the worst backline in the competition with 17 goals given away.

"Once again a defensive error cost us the points against Atalanta," Donadoni said. "We do often make individual mistakes and that is something we must improve on."

Injuries have also hindered Parma, who are without seven players for this weekend's match.

The latest casualty was Chilean winger Cristobal Jorquera, who sustained a thigh injury last time out and will be sidelined for a month.

The only consolation for Donadoni is that captain Alessandro Lucarelli has recovered from a muscular problem and is available.

Rivals Sassuolo are one place and one point clear of Parma heading into the encounter at the Ennio Tardini stadium.

The Emilia-Romagna club has collected four points - all from draws.

Eusebio Di Francesco's side made headlines last weekend when they held Juventus to a 1-1 draw to become the first team to make the Italian champions drop points this season.

"It wasn't worth three points but the draw felt like a win," Sassuolo goalkeeper Andrea Consigli said. "We handed a great performance and this should be the basis for our future matches."