Sarri: ‘Coaches don’t have joysticks, very little control of players’
BERGAMO, ITALY - AUGUST 20: Atalanta BC coach Maurizio Sarri looks on during the UEFA Conference League 2026/27 Play Off Round First Leg match between Atalanta BC v Hapoel Tel Aviv at Gewiss Stadium on August 20, 2026 in Bergamo, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
Maurizio Sarri has more injury problems for Atalanta against Juventus, but warns coaches are not given enough time. ‘You think we’ve got joysticks, but we don’t control everything.’
It kicks off at the Allianz Juventus Stadium in Turin on Sunday at 17.00 UK time (18.00 CEST).
La Dea were already without Isak Hien and Kamaldeen Sulemana, but have added more absentees with news Odilon Kossounou sustained a muscular injury in training.
The good news is the return of Gianluca Gaetano from suspension, while Franck Kessie should start against the club that tried to sign him this summer before he chose Atalanta.
Sarri asks for Atalanta patience
“The defensive line was too deep and passive until the last match, we weren’t reading the situation well, but I did see the line move a bit further forward in the most recent game,” explained Sarri in his press conference.
“Kossounou is out, so Thomas Kristensen will play instead. Kristensen hasn’t trained much with us, and clearly it will take time, but he’s an important player with good individual qualities.”
Sarri won the Scudetto at Juventus, the only league title of his career, yet that single season in 2019/20 is not remembered fondly by either party.
“I have no regrets. It felt as if the Scudetto was taken for granted, but it’s in the past now.”
There have already been two coaches fired in Serie A this season, with more tipped to get the sack very soon and even Juventus boss Luciano Spalletti considered at risk.
“If this mentality has been created, it is down to you journalists and the directors,” replied Sarri.
“Jurgen Klopp said that you don’t see the results of a coach’s work in the first season, let alone in the first month. Tomorrow will be a tough match, we coaches are bonded to the players on the field, but we cannot actively control anything, nor would it be right to do so.
“You in the media seem to think we coaches have joysticks to control the players, but in reality games are won and lost based on numerous factors. It makes me laugh when you look at the head-to-head record between coaches, because it means nothing.
“If I go to Spain and am in charge of Levante, of course I’ll lose to Barcelona, there are different factors at play.”
Sarri tries to put more responsibility onto the shoulders of his Atalanta players.
“I have a group of players who work hard, but in terms of leaders setting the tone, we’re a bit quiet. Sead Kolasinac is really giving a big hand, and I hope more players like Giorgio Scalvini can grow in terms of character. Scalvini is destined to get better and better, but the peak will be when he takes more control of situations.”
Sarri was always a bit of an outlier in Italian football for his attacking approach, but so far there hasn’t been a single 0-0 draw in Serie A this season, so is the culture changing?
“Playing good football increases your chances of scoring goals, but also increases the risk. I do see the medium to small teams tending to play more, they are less likely to go for the point.”
KioskNews shows a cleaned-up reading view extracted from the publisher’s page — the original always lives on their site, not ours.