Baroni urges Lazio not to worry about challenges from big tournaments

The first leg of the quarter-finals of the 2024/25 UEFA Europa League will be played, with Lazio travelling to face Bodø Brønder of the Norwegian Super League. Baroni said his team should not be afraid to participate in important competitions, saying that the venue or external factors cannot be an excuse.

Thanks to Isakson's goal, Lazio defeated Atalanta 1-0 away in the Serie A earlier and successfully met the challenge of the Europa League with a victory.

Lazio coach Baroni said in an interview, "I will only concentrate on the game in front of me and don't have time to think too far ahead, but pressure is part of the job. The more important the game, the greater the tension. We are facing a club that has been running in for a long time and has outstanding technical capabilities. They have caused trouble for many opponents in more than just this tournament. We must unite and maintain stability, and concentrate on dealing with various changes that may occur in the game."

"We can't be afraid of important games. The bigger the game, the more we should treat it as a grand event, while continuing to focus on the lofty goals. Such games do not rely on individuals, but on the collective strength of Lazio."

In addition, when talking about the challenge of playing on artificial turf, Baroni said, "This cannot be an excuse. We knew what conditions we would face and we knew that our opponent was a very good team. I believe the team will not make mistakes at the beginning of the game, and the cold weather, strong wind and artificial turf cannot be an excuse. This game is too important."

"I played on artificial turf for one year during my career, which was an advantage because you could predict the ball's bounce and we had to adapt quickly."

On the other hand, Lazio will host the strong Roma at home in the next round of Serie A.

Baroni said, "This is the first of three tough games in a row and we need to evaluate all situations with the players. Castellanos is in good condition, but I hope to get him back to the state where he can play a full 90 minutes in the second leg."

"We can't expect Bode Shine to give us a break. They won't give us that kind of treatment."