Montella: Sampdoria players need self belief

Vincenzo Montella will work on building his players’ confidence after watching Sampdoria lose 1-0 to Udinese in his debut match as head coach.

Sampdoria were downed at Stadio Friuli after Ghanaian midfielder Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu finished off a fine team move in the first half.

Montella was not too disappointed with his team’s performance in the defeat and says he sees huge potential for his side.

“There is still great room for improvements to be made but I saw a good Sampdoria team that controlled the game well and we had three clear chances that we could have made more of,” Montella told Rai Sport.

“Udinese didn’t do any more than what we did. I have great affection for this team and lovers can make silly choices.

“All of my decisions were weighed up and I think that some of the players need to develop more self belief.”

Montella was sacked by Fiorentina in June following a fourth-place Serie A finish, with some claiming the former Italy international has taken a significant step down.

However, Montella insisted he was keen to take on an exciting challenge and is eager to help improve the club’s on-pitch fortunes.

“It will be a difficult job but this makes it more interesting for me,” he said.

“The squad is ready to work and in along with my staff we all focus on the areas which require improvement.”