Cesena, Mignani on the playoffs: “against Catanzaro without pressure”

The goal is set. At least in the spirit, then in the result it will be seen. “So far playing with carefree has brought us up to here … then the playoffs are a separate tournament”. Michele Mignani goes straight to the point, without turns of words, and smiles proud for the finish line reached by his boys. “If someone in August had told me that as newly promoted we would get so high, I would have taken him for mad. And instead … here we are.” Her Cesena arrived seventh in the championship and on Saturday she will challenge Catanzaro to Ceravolo. The bianconeri, given the worst placement in the standings, will have to win to pass the round. “It’s our fixed thought. We want to go to the semifinal”

Let’s start right from here. She arrives in the playoffs for the third time in three years. Was he expected?

“Honestly,? No. If someone had told me in August I would have taken him for mad. But, in my career, I never placed limits and not even long -term goals. I always thought only of working. Then, slowly, I have become aware of the fact that this group could go far”.

Is there a time when the spark took off?

“I must say already in the Italian Cup in early August, when we beat Padua and Verona in a week. We were very physically well. I thought it would be a fun season there. And the first victory in the championship house confirmed that feeling”.

Was it one of the key points of your season?

“Yes. But I believe that in reality the main junction was our first crisis. Because there is very risk there, especially with such a short ranking, where it is decided all point on point. On 29 December in Carrara we lose our third game in a row: two weeks later we win in Marassi with Samp. At that point I really understood that this team had something special”.

You can also see the coach’s hand in those situations there …

“Surely. I must say that by training in B for a while I have seen all of them. Mine is a young team, made up of many guys who came from Serie C. I think I have transmitted the right calm to the boys, but seriously facing the moment and also helping the singles to get out of it. There are moments in which it becomes essential to try to enter the heads of the players”.

The most beautiful message after reaching the playoffs from who received it?

“From my children and Pioli. Stefano was one of the first to write to me. He binds us a beautiful relationship, he was my coach in Grosseto and he sent me a lot, a lot. I learned more from him than anyone else. It is one of the best Italian coaches in the world and for me it is a pride to have to do and be able to deal with him”.

She spoke several times about the strength of the group of her Cesena. But if he should choose a single, what name would he do?

“I want to name two different names. The first is Ciofi, a boy who has always been in Cesena and who lived two promotions in a row. There was in D, in C and has shown that he can also be very well in Serie B. And then Klinsmann, thanks to him we have some more points. He has incredible qualities, he only needed to find confidence and a little continuity. Believe me, you will see him soon in Serie A”.

Also this year he started quietly and surprised everyone. Can you say is a bit the leitmotif of your career?

“A little yes. But because I am not a coach who makes show, or someone who makes him talk about himself. I am very quiet, reserved. I prefer to work and make the results speak. And in fact, if he sees, at the end of the season the judgments of the people are always very different …”

Speaking of playoffs, did the defeat suffered with Bari at the last minute marked it?

“Yes, but not necessarily in the negative. It was a bad blow, of course, but it also taught me so much. It also changed me a little. I learned to look forward and not mull out on the past. In Bari we had created something magical …”

It would have been the first time in Serie A for her.

“As I said, I don’t look at the past. I think, on the contrary, that things in life come back and I hope to get there one day.”

What does it take to win in Catanzaro?

“First of all, light -heartedness. So far it has always brought us well … playing light, without pressure. The playoffs reset everything, they are a separate championship. We will try to show our value and we will try to win at Ceravolo. We do not place ourselves limits. It is our goal, we want to go to the semifinal”.