Ranieri laments Zeki Celik’s absence ahead of Athletic clash: “He would have been very useful to me.” | OneFootball

Claudio Ranieri discussed tonight’s return leg of the Europa League Round of 16 with Athletic Club Bilbao.

In his interview with Roma TV, Ranieri discussed the keys to the game as well as the impact that Zeki Celik’s absence will have on his team selection for the night.

“Celik? He got hurt right at the last second of the first leg,” he said.

“Too bad, really too bad, he would have been very useful to me, but whoever plays in his place will do his part,” he added.

“We are ready, we know what awaits us, a good team, with an excellent organization, supported by their fans, but we are ready and we will play hard.”

“I said it, the first leg is over, we have a 50/50 chance of going through,” he continued.

“The atmosphere inside the stadium must not affect us. We must play our game, as we are used to doing, without distorting our nature, we know what our merits are, and there are many, and we know what our defects are, and we must try to hide them.”