Pisacane: ‘Cagliari improve self-esteem after victory over Juventus’

Fabio Pisacane hopes the victory over Juventus will allow Cagliari players to ‘understand what they are capable of and improve their self-esteem.’

The Sardinians were expecting a rough night after scraping just one point from the last three rounds, and were coming off a 3-0 hammering at the hands of Genoa.

However, they held out against a surprisingly toothless Juve, and struck with Luca Mazzitelli’s volley on the Gianluca Gaetano free kick.

When Elia Caprile was beaten, they were rescued by the frame of the goal on a deflected Kenan Yildiz strike.

Pisacane sees Cagliari turning point

“Undoubtedly, we feel satisfied, as the team played with organisation, spirit and sacrifice,” Pisacane told Sky Sport Italia.

“We earned a victory against a great opponent, but that only confirmed that when we are lacking something in certain games, that is part of the learning process. I’m glad the team is doing what I ask, and the lads were heroic this evening.”

Incredibly, Cagliari won with an xG of 0.16 compared to Juve’s 1.28.

Check the Football Italia Player Ratings for Cagliari 1-0 Juventus

There was some confusion over the starting XI, as Pisacane returned to three at the back, but also had Gaetano as a deep-lying playmaker.

“Everyone played so well, gave a strong response, and this is a moment where I hope they can understand what they are capable of, improving their self-esteem,” continued the coach.

“We wanted to have our say tonight, even against such a strong rival. Gaetano impressed me above all with his work when out of possession, as it can give us another option going forward. We had already done it as a substitute against Bologna, because I see him in that area, and he deserved this performance.”

This victory puts Cagliari on 22 points from 21 games in Serie A this season, and is only their fifth success of the campaign.

It puts them at least five points clear of the drop zone, potentially as much as eight points depending on tomorrow’s results.

“If we think about the XI who played in Genoa, they were largely very young, and we lacked some leadership presence in that game. I need to understand when to push the younger players and when to give them the time to develop,” added Pisacane.

“I’m very happy to have given the fans this joy. I thank them day after day for their support and their patience, waiting three months for a victory.”