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Maurizio Sarri described Lazio's recent defeat to Fiorentina as 'devastating' and expressed uncertainty about his future with the club. The team faced an injury crisis but had been unbeaten in their previous four matches.
Sarri: āA devastating season, weāll see what Lazio plans areā
Maurizio Sarri feels the Lazio defeat to Fiorentina was āfrankly harsh when we kept the initiative throughout,ā but raised doubts on his future. āWeāll see what the club has in mind.ā
The Aquile were unbeaten in four going into the Stadio Artemio Franchi, albeit dealing with an injury crisis that saw Mattia Zaccagni, Toma Basic and Patric thrown straight back into the starting XI.
Robin Gosens got his head to the Jack Harrison cross to give Fiorentina victory, but David De Gea denied Zaccagni and Petar Ratkov with big saves.
FLORENCE, ITALY ā APRIL 13: Maurizio Sarri manager of SS Lazio looks on during the Serie A match between ACF Fiorentina and SS Lazio at Artemio Franchi on April 13, 2026 in Florence, Italy. (Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images)
āThe goal was fortuitous, as until that moment and frankly for a while afterwards too, we were largely in control,ā Sarri told DAZN Italia.
āWhat we must take responsibility for is allowing them a few too many counter-attacks, but we kept the initiative throughout and the defeat feels frankly harsh considering the performances of the two teams.
āA centre-forward figure inside the penalty area is something weāve been lacking all season, we donāt get those runs into the box to meet the crosses. Ratkov had a chance late on with a header, but we do lack those characteristics.ā
FLORENCE, ITALY ā APRIL 13: Maurizio Sarri manager of SS Lazio looks on during the Serie A match between ACF Fiorentina and SS Lazio at Artemio Franchi on April 13, 2026 in Florence, Italy. (Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images)
Meanwhile, their primary focus is on the Coppa Italia semi-final, having drawn the first leg 2-2 with Atalanta.
āI hope to get players back, but it depends what condition they are in, because just being clinically healed is not enough. We want to finish the season with good performances, and for long periods we did that tonight too.ā
Lazio are now in ninth place and four points adrift of Bologna, but also only one clear of Udinese in 10th.
A top eight finish means missing the first round of the Coppa Italia in August next season, but Sarri reacted with irritation when the panel started a question about āyet another defeatā away from home.
āHold it there, only six teams have lost more than we have this season. If it was the first defeat, weād be top of the table,ā replied the coach.
How worried is Sarri about his own future and that of Lazio?
āI am not worried about my future, for Lazio weāll see what the plans are. I honestly donāt know what the plans are for the future, I can only say this season has been devastating for me. Just preparing tonightās game we were missing 10 players, so we had to use some who were nowhere near fully fit.
āThere have been many problems this season. Weāll see what the club has in mind for the future, and then weāll see what I think as a consequence of that.ā
FLORENCE, ITALY ā APRIL 13: SS Lazio head coach Maurizio Sarri waves during the Serie A match between ACF Fiorentina and SS Lazio at Artemio Franchi on April 13, 2026 in Florence, Italy. (Photo by Marco Rosi ā SS Lazio/Getty Images)
Sarri famously grew up in the shadow of the Stadio Franchi and has been mentioned as a potential new Fiorentina coach for next season.
With this in mind, he received a warm welcome from the Viola supporters before kick-off.
Maurizio Sarri called the defeat 'frankly harsh' and expressed concerns about his future with the club.
Lazio was unbeaten in four matches leading up to the defeat against Fiorentina.
Lazio dealt with an injury crisis that required players like Mattia Zaccagni, Toma Basic, and Patric to return to the starting XI.
Robin Gosens scored the winning goal for Fiorentina, heading in a cross from Jack Harrison.

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