Lazio coach furious with Serie A scheduling after defeat to Inter: “If I were Lotito, I’d withdraw the team”
Maurizio Sarri unleashed a furious post-match outburst after Lazio’s 2-0 defeat to Inter Milan in the Coppa Italia final, criticizing both his team’s mistakes and the controversial scheduling of the upcoming Rome derby.
The Biancocelesti coach admitted Inter deserved the trophy but insisted Lazio had made life difficult for themselves with costly defensive errors.
“We prepared the match by lowering the intensity of our pressing in the first half because we noticed Inter lose some aggression later in games,” Sarri explained.
“After a very organized first half, unfortunately we did everything ourselves and gifted them both goals.”
The decisive moments came through an own goal by Adam Marušić and a costly lapse from Nuno Tavares.
“We had two chances to reopen the match but didn’t take them. They are stronger than us, but tonight the game could have gone in a very different direction.”
“My future? I don’t care right now”
Sarri also addressed growing speculation over his future at Lazio, revealing uncertainty on both sides while emphasizing his disappointment for the squad and supporters.
“I care zero about my future at the moment, but it’s under discussion from both sides,” he admitted.
“What hurts me is the state of mind inside the dressing room. The players are devastated.”
The Lazio coach praised the club’s journey to the final despite the painful ending.
“We had a great run to get here. Tonight we faced a stronger team and, with our own mistakes, they deserved to win.”
Fury over the derby scheduling
The most explosive part of Sarri’s press conference came when discussing the potential scheduling of the Rome derby.
The Lazio coach strongly opposed reports of the match being moved to Sunday lunchtime because of security concerns surrounding the city’s sporting calendar.
“If the derby is on Monday, I’ll come. Sunday? No,” Sarri declared.
“At 12:30 they play football? This mess comes from a series of mistakes made by the league, and now the league has to fix them.”
Sarri criticized the authorities for repeatedly overlapping major football matches with large sporting events in the same city.
“With the ATP Finals they scheduled the Turin derby. With the Italian Open in Rome they schedule the Rome derby. These are enormous mistakes.”
Then came his strongest statement of the night.
“If I were the president, I wouldn’t even send the team onto the pitch. For us it’s the same—we take a point deduction and it’s over.”
“This is not football”
Sarri made clear his frustration was rooted in the sporting and economic importance of the derby.
“There are teams playing for 70, 80, 90 million euros and you make them play at 12:30 at the end of May. This isn’t football—it’s something else.”
Despite the anger, the Lazio coach insisted his team must recover mentally for the final weeks of the season.
“The players are destroyed. I hope in 48 hours the mentality changes. Losing finals hurts.”
“Something is still missing”
In his final assessment, Sarri admitted Lazio still lack something to consistently compete at the highest level.
“The group has strong mental qualities, but technical quality must be added. Something is missing—there’s no point denying it.”
Still, he believes progress has been made over the course of the campaign.
“We are clearly better than we were at the start of the season. Keeping the players motivated hasn’t been easy, but we have to do it.”
After losing the final and with controversy surrounding the derby now exploding, Lazio’s season has suddenly become even more turbulent—and Sarri is no longer hiding his frustration.
