Napoli out of Champions League, focus shifts to Serie A | OneFootball

Napoli, affected by a series of injuries and still recovering from the painful elimination from the Champions League after their defeat to Chelsea on Wednesday, will focus their efforts on securing qualification for Europe’s top competition next season when they host Fiorentina on Saturday (31st), for the 23rd round of Serie A.

At the Diego Maradona Stadium, Napoli squandered a 2-1 halftime lead—which would have been enough to secure a spot in the tournament’s knockout stage—before being defeated 3-2 at home by the current world champions in the second half.

A string of poor results has left the southern Italian team with just one win in their last seven matches across all competitions, causing them to drop to fourth place in Serie A.

The team is nine points behind leaders Inter Milan and holds onto the last Champions League spot by just one point.

Considering the serious injury problems—they had only three outfield first-team players on the bench against Chelsea—Conte was bold about his performance at the club over the past 18 months.

“Each of us is giving our best. During this football disaster, we won an Italian championship title and an Italian Super Cup in a year and a half, so people need to be careful with what they say,” said the coach, known for his strong temperament, after the defeat to Chelsea.

“On the right track”

“Playing without 13 players, many of them key pieces, and facing Chelsea on equal terms, playing a match at European level, that is the most important thing,” he explained.

“Despite the difficulties of this season, since the beginning of which we have had serious injuries, in the end we are still on the right track and growing,” he added.

And he highlighted a clear goal in mind before hosting relegation-threatened Fiorentina on Saturday: “It will be a battle to play in the Champions League next year. We have to play well to earn the chance to be there again.”

*By AFP

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.