Stefano Pioli reflected on Fiorentina's pre-season preparations following Saturday's 1-1 friendly draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford.

“I think we're working well. The players are very receptive. We have lots of things to improve but I see the right level of commitment and desire. I have a group of hard-working, professional players and that provides the foundation for us to work on. I've seen some good things and some less good things, as you expect at this stage of the season. Now we have to up the level, especially on a mental level because we start in two weeks' time.”

The team's fitness seems to be in a good place as you matched two teams who start their season before you. Does that bode well for your upcoming European match?

“Apart from Rolly Mandragora, who had this knee problem which meant he missed some training, the others have been able to train consistently. And when you train consistently well, you get the physical rewards. The most important thing at the moment is the team is able to read certain situation. It's still early but we're already about to start.

“There's no point analyzing this match in too much detail because the next game will pose a different set of problems. I saw the first leg of the Conference League qualifier [Polissya 3-0 Paksi] and the Ukrainian side played very well, with a lot of pace and a good shape. When we resume training on Tuesday, we'll try to raise our level because we need to perform well.”

What did you make of Simon Sohm's debut?

“He's got a great engine, he's good on the ball, has vision and times his runs well. He's come in with a positive attitude and I think he has what it takes to be successful within the set-up we have here. Obviously it's his first game and he's only had two training sessions but I liked his movement and his work rate off the ball.

“The whole team dug in together and we all attacked together. If we work as a team at both ends of the pitch, we can produce some good performances.”

When you arrived, you said the squad was 70-80% ready. What percentage are you at now, a month later?

“Those are things for me to discuss with the club but we're not far off. We're working well and anyone who comes in must have the right attributes to complement our squad and fit the way we want to play.”