Raffaele Palladino comments on the team’s performance against Real Betis and says their job now is to focus on the final Serie A matches.

You must be disappointed about this elimination from the Conference League. I imagine you were hoping to celebrate your contract renewal differently.

“We’re disappointed and saddened by the result. We really wanted to reach the final for our fans, the club, our president and our director. But above all for the team because they once again gave their all. At the end of the match, they were exhausted and unfortunately it didn’t go our way. We’re sad but we must accept the outcome. We played against a team with some top players. Their first goal was an extraordinary free kick. We did a good job scoring the equalizer and then a second goal. Then in the second half I thought we had the right attitude. We were in control. The only major risks for us were during the transitions, but we knew they were good at them. But then when we were performing at our best, we conceded the second goal with that long pass and because we misread them. We could’ve done better. Unfortunately it didn’t go our way and it feels terrible. But now we need to focus on what lies ahead. It’ll be hard to sleep tonight, but starting from tomorrow we need to focus on our match against Venezia because we can still get nine points. We need to do well in these final Serie A matches because we can still get some good results.”

Do you think you lost because Betis are a better team or because of some particular mistakes on your part?

“Football is also about single moments that determine the outcome of a match. I believe that we and Betis were both very competitive opponents in these two matches. We were evenly matched. In both legs it was a back-and-forth situation, with a one-goal difference between the two teams. We could’ve done better on the second goal we conceded: defenders always need to picture the worst-case scenario, but on that occasion we overlooked a detail, and we’d seen videos of them where they were good at those types of moves. And unfortunately if you overlook those details you may end up being eliminated. But the team did their very best. In the end they were exhausted and with leg cramps. They gave it their all.”

Can you comment on Moise Kean’s performance? Also how is he feeling? Is he injured?

“We’ll see how he feels tomorrow. It appears that on his final sprint he felt something. We’ll see how he feels tomorrow together with the medical staff.”

I was expecting something more from the substitutes, both in terms of attitude and effectiveness. Also, are these nine points in Serie A crucial for Fiorentina right now to play in Europe or will you be happy either way with Fiorentina’s performance?

“I see the final three Serie A matches as three finals. We need to do our best to get nine points. As you know football is all about moments and chances, but we have the duty and ambition to play three important matches. Anything is possible right now. Our opponents will be playing against each other. Tonight has certainly been a disappointment. My job is to think about the mental state of the team, which is more important than our match on Monday. But I need to work on the team’s mental state and help them get over this disappointment. It won’t be easy because they were really hoping to make it to the final. Along with that, I need to make sure we get those nine points. We’ll give it our best shot. As you know, substitutions aren’t easy. To me substitutes are supposed to bring fresh energy, technical quality and the right attitude to the pitch. I was expecting something more from our substitutes. Of course it’s not easy because it’s a tough part of the match. Nevertheless, I expected something more from some of them.”

Can you comment on Yacine Adli being replaced at half time?

“It was because he struggled in the first half. He was sometimes man-marked, other times he was left free. Lately he hasn’t played much. He isn’t in optimal physical condition of course, but he did not play a good match technically speaking. He tried hard and had the right attitude. He man-marked Isco and did a good job. But I replaced him with [Amir] Richardson and I think Richardson played well - I want to stress that. He did a good job as playmaker and against Isco.”

Do you think Danilo Cataldi will be fit for Venezia?

“I don’t think so.”