Lecce, the "voice" of Sticchi Damiani

LECCE - President Saverio Sticchi Damiani takes stock of the very complicated season experienced by Lecce and shows himself charged for the next one.

"I start from the death of Graziano Fiorita, to whom I dedicate the historic salvation that we achieved. What happened continues to turn our lives upside down because losing such a young travel companion, during a retreat that we had chosen to do more than a thousand kilometers from home in a delicate moment, has human implications that are unimaginable. In Coccaglio, with the team, before the tragic event, a spring was triggered that pushed us to say things that we had never said, to be together as we had never done. Then, that cursed morning we had to face something gigantic".

He adds: "Graziano's passing has united Italian football around the theme of humanity, compared to the arid ones linked to economic issues. All this has also compacted the environment around us, giving us the strength to achieve an epic result. Fiorita was a key man in the locker room. He transmitted our values. This mourning event has given everyone, for him, incredible courage, which was seen on the field, even more so in the last 90 minutes with Lazio, who had the maximum level of difficulty and in which they gave us up for lost".

Sticchi Damiani focuses on the various stages of an uphill year: «It started with the bad news about Gonzalez, who did not pass the medical tests, unfortunately confirmed in recent days. I must compliment our cardiologist Dr. Tondo and our medical staff, who managed to identify a pathology, apparently congenital, difficult to verify, saving the life of the boy, who is now dedicating himself profitably to economic studies. Then on the 12th day there was a change of technical guide, which means that something went wrong. So, after the Christmas dinner ended at 10:30 p.m., we found ourselves at the police station for the arrest of one of our players (Pelmard, later sold), for an episode that left us very embarrassed».

The president focuses on two other aspects. "I'm talking about it because we saved ourselves - he specifies - We had many unfortunate refereeing episodes against us that represent a unique case and that I don't connect to prejudices, episodes that we brought to the attention of the competent bodies and that cost us several points. After the match with Lazio we were heavily fined, after being treated very badly by the match director, who wrote an unacceptable report. I will ask that he no longer referee Lecce's matches. Furthermore, in the clashes with direct rivals we were extraordinary, gaining 4 points out of 6 with all and 3 out of 6 with Cagliari. The anomaly was what we collected with the medium-large teams, but we only once had the advantage of facing a team coming from the European cups. Other teams have had this happen 8, 7, 6 times. It is a distortion that needs to be corrected".

He defends the transfer market and praises the work of Pantaleo Corvino and Stefano Trinchera: "In January we tried to do our best, making significant operations, logical for a club like ours. All this without having received a single euro for the sale of Dorgu because the first ones arrived on March 30. On the transfer of the Dane I apologize to the fans because I said he wouldn't move. But we found ourselves faced with the out out of Manchester United who made it clear that the operation either had to be done immediately or it would fall through, with the boy who understandably wanted to accept the proposal. Regarding the technical area, in five seasons, Corvino and Trinchera have reached a play-off final in Serie B, a promotion to Serie A and three salvations, making possible that economic consolidation that has allowed us to grow so much also in the structures. It is an objectively stratospheric balance. Perhaps we didn't give the right communication at the beginning of the season, when we talked about "raising the bar". But we certainly didn't mean to say that we wanted to aim for the Europa League. We explained that the championship would be more difficult than the previous one and that therefore the squad had to be improved, to reach safety".

The top exponent of Lecce returns to the change on the bench: "Whoever takes over during the race finds himself managing a group that he did not help to build. Giampaolo has done a great job together with his staff, composed of excellent professionals, despite moments of considerable difficulty. Of the trainer from Abruzzo I also discovered the man, his sensitivity, his correctness. In the next few days there will be a meeting between the technical area and the coach and a decision will be made on the future".

Finally, he urges the Giallorossi people to unite: "We are measuring ourselves against something enormous. The next Serie A sees us as the southernmost reality, together with Napoli, champion of Italy. Playing football in the South is difficult because here it is difficult to attract capital. What we are experiencing is a sporting miracle, the result of a widespread organization, but still improvable. In this sense, my thanks go to the other members for the affection and support that I have always received from each of them. Every year there are fewer and fewer teams potentially fighting for permanence. This means that Lecce has a 50% chance of relegation. We arrive at the next season in good health thanks to the path of these years. We are all very motivated. In a few days, work will begin at the "Via del Mare". We have asked to play the first match away from home, plus two more consecutive away games in March, combined with the break scheduled for the national team, in conjunction with the more invasive structural interventions related to the roofing. Upon returning from the retreat, the team will have part of the sports center at its disposal, with a first pitch. The second one will be ready in October. The company's official store will open on July 1st."