Conte: Napoli ‘did the opposite of what we said in the dressing room’ | OneFootball

Antonio Conte feels that Napoli were in control at the end of the first half, but has said that his players ‘did the opposite of what we said in the dressing room’ at half-time of their eventual 2-1 loss against Como in Serie A on Sunday.

The Partenopei fell behind through a comical Amir Rrahmani own goal early on, but reacted positively and found an equaliser through Giacomo Raspadori 10 minutes later. Conte’s team struggled for opportunities in the second half, and were punished by Assane Diao just shy of 20 minutes from time.

COMO, ITALY – FEBRUARY 23: Assane Diao of Como 1907 celebrates after scoring their team’s second goal during the Serie A match between Como 1907 and SSC Napoli at Stadio G. Sinigaglia on February 23, 2025 in Como, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

As a result, Napoli have lost control of the title race and now sit one point behind Inter heading into a direct clash with their Scudetto rivals next weekend.

Conte assesses costly Napoli defeat

Conte was not best pleased by what he saw from his players in the second half of their defeat to Como, but he takes responsibility for not delivering his messages  and tactics clearly enough.

“Inevitably, the second half didn’t please me after a very good first period,” Conte said in his post-match press conference, reported via TMW.

COMO, ITALY – FEBRUARY 23: Lucas Da Cunha of Como 1907 competes for the ball with Stanislav Lobotka and Giacomo Raspadori of SSC Napoli during the Serie A match between Como 1907 and SSC Napoli at Stadio G. Sinigaglia on February 23, 2025 in Como, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

“The team weren’t discouraged after the own goal. In the second half, we came back out and did basically the opposite of what we said to each other in the dressing room. Como were hungrier than us. I’m very sorry, but we definitely have to understand the reason behind this drop.”

Explaining where things went wrong on the day for Napoli, Conte added: “It was important to withstand the pressure, now we have to tend to our wounds. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to transfer the concept of nastiness and hunger.

“We have to sweat for every victory. As soon as we slow down in terms of viciousness, this sort of thing can happen. It’s my fault, I didn’t spot the slowdown in terms of desire and concentration. We have to work hard and do our best.”

“Let’s not forget that compared to Inter, we’ve gained 40 points compared to last year. We are doing an extraordinary thing, but we have to maintain this level of grit and nastiness. We have to give our best from here until the end. Defeats cannot be tolerated.

“I hate losing, so we have to stay on track until the end, knowing that these guys are doing something amazing.”