Pressure Piles On Hosts Napoli As Roles Reverse Before Massive Maradona Showdown With Inter Milan | OneFootball

Ahead of Saturday’s match between Napoli and Inter, the pressure is now on Antonio Conte after Cristian Chivu and his side bounced back from a shaky start to the season.

The narrative has shifted, and according to Corriere dello Sport, “all the pressure now seems to be on Napoli” ahead of the showdown at the Maradona.

The paper argues that Antonio Conte has already lost ground on the communication front after the Champions League defeat to PSV.

Furthermore, noting that the coach effectively acknowledged how the “favourites” tag has backfired onto his own team.

The reasoning, CorSport writes, is simple.

If you win the Scudetto, sign De Bruyne and then add Hojlund to replace Lukaku, it is natural to carry the burden of expectation.

For the newspaper, this is the price of behaving like the ‘first in class.’

“All The Pressure Is On Napoli” – Roles Reversed For Conte And Chivu As Inter Prepare For Key Clash

BERGAMO, ITALY – JANUARY 18: SSC Napoli coach Antonio Conte looks on before the Serie A match between Atalanta BC and SSC Napoli at Gewiss Stadium on January 18, 2025 in Bergamo, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

The report highlights how the dynamic between the two clubs has flipped.

Inter, in their view, are more competitive than last season’s team, which still went within touching distance of a historic treble.

Young forwards Pio Esposito and Bonny are outperforming Arnautovic and Taremi, while Akanji offers greater weight than Pavard in the back line.

Above all, the choice of Cristian Chivu is defined as a masterstroke.

CorSport credits Giuseppe Marotta’s intuition, insisting that Chivu looks “more and more like the right man in the right place.”

With Inter gathering momentum and Napoli under scrutiny, the Roman daily frames tonight not just as a match, but as a test of nerve and identity.