PRESS AZZURRA Gattuso without excuses before BiH: The pitch is not a problem, heart and play will decide

(Patria) - The fight for World Cup qualification has come down to one match that we will watch tomorrow at Bilino Polje between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Italy.

The Dragons want to finally make the nation happy and qualify for a major tournament, but it won't be easy for them considering the Azzurri are coming to visit, writes sportsport.ba.

The Italians arrived in Bosnia and Herzegovina today and visited the Bilino Polje stadium, after which a press conference was held. Gennaro Gattuso addressed the present media and had a lot to say.

He was asked at the beginning if he felt pressure like against Northern Ireland or if he was more relaxed now.

"I feel the same as in Bergamo because I know what is expected of us. I hope the whole of Italy will be with us again tomorrow. We know we have a tough match ahead of us, but we are ready to give our maximum and leave everything on the field, which is the most important thing," said Gattuso at the beginning and continued.

"Even when we have been bad in history and not at our level, we have known how to win championships. It is important that we are at our maximum".

Have you managed to overcome the fears you had before the playoffs?

"What can I say? Being a footballer and a coach leaves you room to make mistakes. I always tell the players to do their best on the field. Seven months ago we weren't like this, we have to tell the truth, because we made a lot of mistakes and conceded goals easily. Now we have a good team and I think we will play better tomorrow than on Thursday".

"We know we have to play well tomorrow. We have every right and we must give our maximum, we know the match will be difficult, but we must face it with a certain cheerfulness. We are ready to deliver what our fans here, as well as at home, expect".

You have just seen the pitch at Bilino Polje, your comment?

"I think the pitch is just an alibi and an excuse. If it's bad for us, it's bad for them too, we have to play and not think about it. As for the pitch, it's acceptable. Last year I spent time in the area and played on worse pitches than this with Hajduk. We have to think about the opponent and play, not think about the pitch".

He also commented on the controversial video of his players celebrating after the Wales vs. BiH match ended, which caused quite a stir in the Bosnian and Italian public. He also commented on Sergej Barbarez's statements.

"Sergej is a great player and I know he likes poker, I remember him when he had blue hair and played for Bayer and HSV. He is a good expert, well-prepared and likeable, players love him. I'm glad we will meet".

"We have overcome all that about Dimarco and the team, we shouldn't pay attention to it, it's nonsense. BiH is a good team, physically fit with two excellent strikers. Barbarez likes to play poker, he is very interesting and likeable. Of course, I'm joking about the poker, I respect him a lot".

What will happen to Italian football if you don't qualify for the World Cup?

"As coach, I will take full responsibility, but we shouldn't think about it or rack our brains. We must focus only on the match and what awaits us on the field and direct all our energy to the field".

Besides Gattuso, Gigi Donnarumma was also at Italy's press conference.

The captain of the Italian national team revealed his expectations before tomorrow's match against our Dragons.

"We know we have to play well tomorrow. We have every right and we must give our maximum, we know the match will be difficult, but we must face it with a certain cheerfulness. We are ready to deliver what our fans here, as well as at home, expect".

Gattuso added at the end that his time spent at Hajduk Split helped him to better understand the Balkan mentality for this match.

Let us remind you, the match between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Italy will be played at 20:45, and will be officiated by Frenchman Clément Turpin.