New Crawley Town head coach Gabriele Cioffi praises caretaker bosses Jimmy Smith and Filipe Morais

Gabriel Cioffi has praised the job done by caretaker managers Jimmy Smith and Filipe Morais in steering Crawley Town to last weekend's victory away to top of the table Lincoln City.
Crawley Town caretaker managers Jimmy Smith and Filipe Morais speak to the media after overseeing a 1-0 win at Lincoln City.
Picture by Graham Carter SUS-180913-181248002Crawley Town caretaker managers Jimmy Smith and Filipe Morais speak to the media after overseeing a 1-0 win at Lincoln City.
Picture by Graham Carter SUS-180913-181248002
Crawley Town caretaker managers Jimmy Smith and Filipe Morais speak to the media after overseeing a 1-0 win at Lincoln City. Picture by Graham Carter SUS-180913-181248002

Smith has now joined the coaching team after it was revealed he will be out of action as a player for most of the season with a serious knee injury.

He said: “Jimmy Smith will be out all season - six months minimum but I have had this surgery three times I know complications can arise.

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“They did an amazing job and I am deeply convinced about this.

“Imagine you are driving a car and then at a certain moment you don’t have the wheel - the car can literally go where it wants.

“Jimmy could make a coach in the future but I don’t think he is thinking about it short-term.”

Crawley Town head coach Gabriele Cioffi revealed he already knows League 2 well, having made scouting trips to England from his native Italy to watch matches.

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“I have seen Crawley play twice this season and three or four gtimes last season because I like the environment.

“I know this squad very well - often last season I flew here and stayed two or three months watching games.

“I know the league and the players very well and with the support of (assistant) Nathan Rooney and Jimmy I can go through the details and I’m confident.”