Maurizio Sarri Is Hoping To Build On Lazio's Foundation After Eliminating Milan In The Coppa Italia

It definitely was a revenge mission for Lazio against AC Milan in the Coppa Italia Round of 16 at the Stadio Olimpico as the two teams already faced each other fee days ago in the league and the Aquile were still smarting after Saturday’s tense 1-0 defeat at San Siro in Serie A.

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Now, much to their credit, they immediately got revenge five days later with a win by the same scoreline in the Coppa Italia as Mattia Zaccagni was allowed a free header on a Nuno Tavares corner at the near post, surprising the Rossoneri defence and sending Lazio through to the quarter-finals.

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For their coach, Maurizio Sarri, he revealed that he is ‘relishing’ this season with Biancocelesti and trying to ‘build the foundations’ of a squad as he spoke to the press after the game where they eliminated last year’s finalist and will meet the defending champions, Bologna in the next round.

“These are situations I enjoy, with so many difficulties and injuries since July, but the team is eager to work, so I enjoy myself during the week. Naturally, I get angry during the match, because we make some errors technically and aren’t at the same level of other squads, but the training part I really relish,” Sarri said.

“We were pleased that over 40,000 people came to the Stadio Olimpico and made a ferocious noise. It was pleasing for the lads, because they were mortified at the end of the last home game, even humiliated. They needed this.” He continued in his interview with Sport Mediaset.

The change was because the Lazio fans were on strike in protest at a row between some sets of the ultras and the club management, so either sat in silence or boycotted the last home match entirely. “This was a knockout competition, we go forward and don’t even have time to enjoy it too much, as this weekend we have another extremely difficult match.”

Curiously, that will also be against Bologna in Serie A on Sunday, who they’ll meet again in the Coppa Italia quarter-final in 2026. Sarri has a very limited squad not only due to injuries, but also the Financial Fair Play parameters, so a player like Toma Basic had been frozen out, was welcomed back in as an emergency and has become the key to this Lazio midfield.

“It’s true, he arrived with great prospects, but partly our fault and partly his, he rather lost his way. I had no doubts welcoming him back in and he is repaying us with important performances. In terms of movements, he is one of the most reliable we’ve got, if not the most reliable.” He continued.

Lazio have an excellent record in the Coppa Italia, reaching the quarter-finals in each of the last 15 editions of the tournament. “If we reach the end of the season and feel we have seven or eight players we can rely on, bringing in three or four to bolster the group, that’ll be a success.”

“If we are able to build the foundations, that will already be something important for this club. We hope to keep this process up,” he concluded. Meanwhile, for the goal scorer, Zaccagni and Adam Marusic, they both admitted that the controversial defeat to Milan gave them ‘extra motivation’ to get revenge in the Coppa Italia.

It was only on Saturday evening that these two teams met in Serie A with a controversial 1-0 Rossoneri victory at San Siro.The roles were reversed tonight in the Coppa Italia, as Zaccagni was allowed a free header on a Nuno Tavares corner to seal the 1-0 win and set up a quarter-final showdown with trophy holders Bologna.

Just like in the previous game, Mike Maignan also made a couple of big saves on Gustav Isaksen and Tijjani Noslin, but this time around, Rafael Leao missed a sitter at 0-0. “We are truly happy, our objective was to go through, and we also were really eager to make up for Saturday,” Zaccagni said.

“It was a strong performance, we earned this place in the quarter-finals. This is a difficult season, but we are united, the coach will indicate the right path, and we’re with him.” He further added in his interview with Sport Mediaset while Marusic also had his say.

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“That was extra motivation, what happened on Saturday, we all really wanted to get the win and go through. Our fans were right behind us and we hope to play many more games in the Coppa Italia with them,” Marusic added, referring to the controversial defeat in the league.

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