Baroni ‘expects a lot’ from Dele-Bashiru in new Lazio role | OneFootball

Lazio coach Marco Baroni explains his choices for the Europa League opener against Dynamo Kyiv and why he ‘expects a lot’ from Fisayo Dele-Bashiru in a more advanced role.

It kicks off at the Volksparkstadion in Hamburg at 20.00 UK time (19.00 GMT).

You can follow all the build-up and action as it happens on the LIVEBLOG.

The Biancocelesti are coming off a disappointing 2-1 defeat to Fiorentina in Serie A, decided by a penalty kick that infuriated their coach, but have to focus on this UEFA tournament.

“Lazio care about this competition, of course. We are convinced and prepared the game well, so if I left a few players to rest, it is only because there were some situations that were borderline and not fully recovered,” Baroni told Sky Sport Italia.

“Taty is with us, but was out for five days. We need a high-level performance, because our opponents are strong and very motivated.”

Samuel Gigot is injured, with Taty Castellanos and Tijjani Noslin not at 100 per cent, so Boulaye Dia leads the attack with support from Pedro. Do Lazio have enough strength in depth to handle these tournaments?

“Our squad is capable and deep enough, I use players who are training hard and giving their contribution. In modern football, you can no longer think about a team with starters and subs, you need 20 players all ready to go.”

Baroni on Lazio approach to Dynamo Kyiv

Vladyslav Vanat and Mykola Shaparenko are tricky customers for Dynamo Kyiv, but what weaknesses can Lazio try to take advantage of?

“They have pace and the striker is good at dictating the through balls. It is a big test for us. We need to keep our shape, remain solid, work on cross-field passes and seeking those gaps between the lines, putting crosses in from wide, that is what we want to do,” continued Baroni.

This will be the first UEFA match in Baroni’s coaching career, so has he changed his training routine to deal with this new schedule?

“I did not change my approach, as we didn’t have many days to prepare, but we worked in training. It’s usually the third game in a week that drains you, not the second. We have to give it our all tonight.

“I moved up Dele-Bashiru, as he is a player who can give us forward runs even without the ball. He has great potential and is improving, so this feels like the right game for him to shine and I expect a lot from his performance.”