Cosmi confident of Lecce survival

New Lecce coach Serse Cosmi is confident he can guide the club away from the Serie A drop zone. Cosmi, 53, has replaced Eusebio Di Francesco, who was sacked yesterday after a string of poor results. The former Palermo coach, who has signed a contract until the end of the season, said: "I accepted Lecce's offer because I believe that it's possible for the team to avoid the drop. I always wanted to coach this team and I'm finally here. I hope that together we can achieve something positive." Last weekend's 4-2 defeat at Napoli left Lecce at the foot of the standings. The Salentini have mustered just one win in their last 11 league games and lie six points off safety. Cosmi, who has also coached at Brescia and Livorno, added: "I will try to give the team a spark. "I haven't seen in this team the usual desperation that is common with teams that are fighting to avoid the drop. I believe this team has quality players that can help the team avoid relegation. I can guarantee the fans that I will give everything to do well here in Lecce." Cosmi's first game in charge will be against Lazio on Saturday.