Udinese tactician Pasquale Marino is sure they have “learned our lesson and won’t underestimate Palermo.”
The Friulani were among the favourites for a Champions League spot on a few weeks ago, but incredibly inconsistent results have seen them slide down the standings.
“I have faith in this squad and, aside from individual players, the team must put on to the field maximum effort and concentration. The lessons learned in recent games have to help us develop in that sense.”
Some defensive howlers in particular contributed to Udinese conceding a whopping 13 goals in five games before the 2-0 victory over Atalanta last weekend broke that run.
“We know we are facing a Palermo side of absolute quality and Udinese must be able to play their style of football, regardless of the line-up or the opponents,” added Marino.
“Is this a UEFA Cup play-off? It is too early to think of objectives right now, especially in this phase of the season. At the start we were confident of achieving safety without too many problems and that is proving to be the case.
“We got less points than expected since the halfway stage, but must continue to look forward and not at what has been.
“It’s always more difficult in the second half of a campaign, as the team take different tactical approaches and points become absolutely paramount.”
