Napoli, Conte after Pisa: “Four key wins in the bag, but patience needed” | OneFootball

Antonio Conte spoke to Sky Sport’s microphones after Napoli’s victory over Pisa, highlighting both his satisfaction with the three points earned and the difficulties faced on the field. “Let’s start by saying that it’s never easy to win,” the coach explained. “Today we played against a team I had warned all the players about. According to the physical statistics, Pisa is first in everything, which means they have very physically strong players. It wasn’t easy.”

Napoli, Conte warns: “The squad is new, we need to break it in by playing”

Conte emphasized the team’s effort and the management of different phases of the game: “When you’re controlling the match and leave space, it becomes difficult once the ball gets to their attackers. In the first half, we even struggled to make diagonal runs with the midfielders. In any case, we’re satisfied with the four wins, we’ve put some hay in the barn.”

Regarding the hug with Lucca after the goal, Conte clarified: “I didn’t say anything to him. I hugged him because he’s a guy who’s working really hard, just like the others. When I preach calm and caution, it’s not because I want to make excuses, but because we don’t have a well-oiled squad. We’ve filled it with many players coming from different backgrounds. They arrive and have the Scudetto on their shirt, which is a heavy burden, and they have important expectations. We need to break the team in during the Champions League and Coppa Italia, knowing there are still players who need to grow.”

On training concentration to play at high levels, Conte added: “Certainly, by playing and gaining experience, you train this aspect. But for us, this season will be the most complex, because we intervened in the transfer market by filling the squad with nine players. That means you’re changing half the team. We need to be patient, wait, and accept mistakes.”

Finally, the coach commented on managing the various phases of a match, also referencing Manchester City: “There are different phases in a match, you need to be good at high pressing, in a medium block, and when you’re forced to sit deep. Before Di Lorenzo’s sending off, you could see what our plan was. After the red card, you just have to hope to defend and bring home the bread. I see that everyone is starting to understand these dynamics. Playing every three or four days inevitably brings physical and mental stress.”

Andrea Alati

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