Lazio coach Maurizio Sarri defended his team after their defeat to Inter Milan.
Sarri also hit out at critics of his tactics.
“The performance was good until the second goal. In the first 20 minutes after the restart, we didn’t let Inter into our penalty area,” Sarri told DAZN.
“Unfortunately, we played on level terms with a very strong opponent and were penalised by a mistake and a half.
“I tell the players to pass the ball where I can see, not where they point. It’s a mistake.
“I think the fans were jeering for previous errors, not the current ones. I see this performance as solid foundations to build on for the future.”
On those critics, he continued: “I’m sorry, but this makes me laugh, it is a cliché. Barcelona won 10 years playing the same way, at Napoli in three years we scored 30 goals with the same move of Lorenzo Insigne cutting inside and crossing to Jose Callejon.
“The trouble is that we create three or four chances and do not convert them. Last season we were first in terms of goal conversion, this season I think we’re 16th.
“We passed the ball with greater speed than before, we did fairly well on the right flank, can improve on the left. The most fundamental areas where we need to improve are in the final third, as we had tonight three shamefully poor shots from outside the box.
“You just have to look at the statistics, we play practically the same number of passes in the box as last season, we have more or less the same shots, but we don’t convert them, especially with our strikers. Perhaps we never had our forwards in great shape this season, as Zaccagni and Immobile had injuries, Felipe Anderson seemed to be improving this evening.
“I hope that by passing the ball around quicker, we can be more incisive.”