Naples disappoints in the premier class
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In SSC Napoli’s 2-6 defeat at PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League, seven of the 16 players used were newcomers. For coach Antonio Conte, this was one of the reasons why the Italian champions fell under the wheels. “It’s definitely disappointing. When situations like this happen, they never happen by chance. Last year we won the league with only a few players. They outdid themselves by being compact and staying together as a team. This year we have more games and brought in more players,” explained the 56-year-old.
Four new signings, Kevin De Bruyne, Vanja Milinković-Savić, Sam Beukema and Lorenzo Lucca, were in the starting line-up, while three more, Miguel Gutiérrez, Eljif Elmas and Noa Lang, came on as substitutes. In total, Napoli signed ten new players for 115 million euros before the season, with Emanuele Rao being loaned directly to Bari. “Nine new signings were too many for me, but we had to do it. There is no reason to despair,” said Conte. Although numerous professionals also left Naples, only Giacomo Raspadori, Philip Billing and Giovanni Simeone had much playing time when they won the championship.
Last season, when Napoli won the Scudetto for the fourth time, Conte fielded a total of 27 professionals. The previous year, the club had missed out on international business in tenth place, so there was no triple burden to make the task more difficult this season – so far 24 players have been involved. “We have a lot of work to do. We have to try to recreate the chemistry we had last year. When you bring nine new faces into one locker room, it’s going to take time.”
In the Champions League, Naples is in 23rd place (table) after defeats against PSV and Man City and a win against Sporting. Nationally, however, the champions are within striking distance of league leaders Milan. One point separates the third-placed Partenopei from the Rossoneri. At the weekend, Conte’s team will duel with runners-up Inter Milan.