Conte: ‘Grown my football knowledge’ at Napoli with De Bruyne adjustments | OneFootball

Antonio Conte is eager to face ‘top club’ Manchester City in the Champions League and has ‘grown my football knowledge’ at Napoli trying to balance Kevin De Bruyne within the team.

It kicks off at the Etihad on Thursday at 20.00 UK time (19.00 GMT).

This marks the return of the Partenopei to European football after missing out last season, but making the most of that time to focus on Serie A and win their second Scudetto in three years.

Conte sees Napoli development

SASSUOLO, ITALY – AUGUST 23: Antonio Conte, Head Coach of Napoli, looks on prior to the Serie A match between US Sassuolo Calcio and SSC Napoli at Mapei Stadium Citta del Tricolore on August 23, 2025 in Sassuolo, Italy. (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)

“It is always emotional, as this is the most important European competition and it allows us to get back into fantastic stadiums like this. I was already here for Chelsea and Tottenham, but this is my first time against Manchester City in Europe,” Conte told Sky Sport Italia.

Napoli were not even in Europe last season, which allowed them to focus only on Serie A and pipping Inter to the Scudetto by a single point.

Meanwhile, the Partenopei have never beaten an English team in the Champions League.

“I didn’t know that! It will certainly be a difficult match, as Manchester City won practically everything it was possible to win over the last few years. We are talking about a top club with a top coach,” added Conte.

“We come here with great humility, but also the desire to understand not where we are right now, because it is only the start of a project we started last year, but if we are growing on schedule.

“It is inevitable that last season we didn’t have the opportunity to measure ourselves up in Europe. Tomorrow we start with a big mountain to climb in the form of Manchester City, but we are eager to measure ourselves up and also learn from the masters of this tournament.”

Antonio Conte Aurelio De Laurentiis Napoli

Conte reveals he has grown and changed as a coach, both during his time out after leaving Tottenham Hotspur, and especially when adapting to a new experience at Napoli.

“My greatest satisfaction is what I’ve been doing at Napoli since last season, which is trying to grow my football knowledge too. What we as coaches must do is try to pick the players we think are the best, so not sacrifice talent to fit a system or be anchored to ideas,” he continued.

“That is a step I started to make at Napoli last year, as before that I was far more rigid on the 3-5-2 or 3-4-2-1, which had helped me to do well at Chelsea and Tottenham. With the arrival of De Bruyne, we tried to find the right formula to get the most talented players working together.”

FLORENCE, ITALY – SEPTEMBER 13: Antonio Conte manager of SSC Napoli celebrates after scoring a goal with Rasmus Hojlund of SSC Napoli during the Serie A match between ACF Fiorentina and SSC Napoli at Artemio Franchi on September 13, 2025 in Florence, Italy. (Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images)

When asked what system Conte was using now, the Napoli boss was hesitant to give a specific answer beyond four at the back.

“It is also a long season, so we can alternate a few different situations. In modern football, you play one way when defending, another when attacking, to give no reference points. This is a squad that can also play 4-3-3, as we have Noa Lang, Politano and Elmas, who are very versatile.

“Last season, we had to change often out of sheer necessity. I want us to continue along that courageous and difficult path, which from tomorrow can allow us to see what the gap is between us and a huge side like Manchester City.”