“Don’t make me laugh about who they’re missing!” Jose Mourinho remains wary of depleted Napoli side ahead of Champions League clash | OneFootball

Jose Mourinho’s Benfica face Antonio Conte’s Napoli in the Champions League’s sixth matchday on Wednesday evening. Ahead of the clash in Lisbon, the ‘Special One’ addressed the media.

Mourinho began his press conference comments by touching on his previous Serie A experience. “Knowing Napoli well can help, but that doesn’t mean their quality is inferior. They’re a very strong team; they’ve won two league titles in a very short space of time.”

Off the back of this, the Eagles’ manager affirmed that these feats mean very little when they cross the white lines at the Estadio da Luz, as Sporting recently found in the 1-1 draw last Friday.

“We played well against Sporting; we were stronger against an opponent who has won two league titles in a row. We were penalised early on by individual errors from two of our players, something that has happened to us in recent games.”

Ahead of kick-off, Benfica are a lowly 30th place with one win and four losses in their first five games. Napoli enter the game inside the qualification places in 20th, after winning two, drawing one, and losing two in their opening five.

The topic of discussion turned to tomorrow night’s visitors, Napoli. Just how much thought has the experienced given to Gli Azzurri’s absences? Well, no.

“Don’t make me laugh about the players they’re missing, because not having De Bruyne is the same as having McTominay. I have some significant absences, but I don’t want to cry. Napoli’s bench is different; if you look at who’s playing, you forget who’s missing. By changing the system, they’ve become a better team.”

Regarding McTominay, Mourinho is the man who gave the Scottish international his debut at Manchester United. He was asked as to whether this, and the reunion with Leonardo Spinazzola, added an exciting element to this fixture.

“No, these exciting things are pre- and post-match. Nothing more. It’s not like I think about these things during the game. We have to win this match against a very strong opponent; it will be a very difficult match for us. We’ll do everything we can to get the result we want.”

GIFN | Max Bradfield