Lazio veteran Pedro admits coach Maurizio Sarri was key to his move from Roma.

Pedro made the surprise switch last year.

He recalled, “The story was born in the press conference, because it was announced that I was out of the squad. From that moment on many teams started calling, one of these was Lazio.

“Sarri himself asked me: 'What's happening? I saw that you are out of the squad and that you have a problem with the club.' I replied to him that I didn't know the reason for the club's decision and that I was training with the Primavera.

“We had never talked about it. He wanted to understand what had happened because, knowing me very well, he knows that I always train to the maximum. I hadn't spoken to Mourinho. I wanted to talk to the owners, but they told me it wasn't possible.

“So, after three weeks, with the market closing, I spoke to Sarri who told me: 'Come here, there's room for you'. I had already worked with him, and I took the opportunity to play in a historic team."