Conte on Gilmour doubt vs. Inter and Napoli’s ‘toughest’ month | OneFootball

Antonio Conte admits he’s still uncertain whether Billy Gilmour or Philip Billing will replace the injured Frank Anguissa against Inter and jokes that Napoli’s ‘toughest’ month was August, not February.

The Partenopei saw Inter overtake them at the top of the Serie A table, but hope to re-establish their lead in the league tomorrow when they host the Nerazzurri at the Stadio Maradona.

“Beyond the standings, I would have expected a Napoli that, after seven months, would start taking shape,” Conte said at a pre-match press conference via TuttoNapoli.

“Finding ourselves in this position should fill us with pride, but it shouldn’t put pressure on us. As I told the guys, sometimes pressure can be positive, other times negative. That’s why I keep telling the players to enjoy this moment. We earned this position in the standings through our hard work.”

Cameroon international Anguissa has suffered a muscle injury and won’t be available tomorrow. Billing or Gilmour will replace the 29-year-old in the middle of the park, but Conte hasn’t yet decided who will get the nod.

“Good question; I’ve been carrying it with me all week,” Conte said, smiling.

“I still have 24 hours to decide, but it’s a technical question that I appreciate because it’s very specific. Both options could be right. We will try to make the best choice by evaluating the players and always looking for a solution to injuries, which are part of the journey. Some players recover more easily, while others struggle more. But we must find a solution, we worked on it, and you will see it tomorrow.”

Conte on Gilmour doubt vs. Inter and Napoli’s ‘toughest’ month

EMPOLI, ITALY – OCTOBER 20: Billy Gilmour of SSC Napoli celebrates the victory after during the Serie A match between Empoli and Napoli at Stadio Carlo Castellani on October 20, 2024 in Empoli, Italy. (Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images)

David Neres will also miss the game due to an injury, while Mathias Olivera and Leonardo Spinazzola will be fit to play.

“We’ve recovered them. Spinazzola played the entire match against Como, and we managed his workload during the week,” Conte confirmed.

“Mathias had a more serious issue. It was a recurring calf injury. He’s working to be in top shape, and both of them are available. We’ll see which choice is the most appropriate. I also have to consider the rest of the season to avoid physical setbacks. It would be tough to deal with relapses. They are both important players, but our real strength is the collective, the team spirit.

“Even in this situation, with Anguissa’s injury, we will try to compensate. The curious thing is that neither Neres nor Anguissa had any issues at the end of a game, but the next day, they both had muscle problems.”

Billing, who is currently on loan from Bournemouth, started his first Serie A game on Sunday against Como.

“He is a player with a great physical structure and good technique,” Conte argued.

“I’m happy he had the opportunity to play. When you don’t start the season with the team and arrive in mid-January, you struggle with a new methodology and a different tactical setup. You need time to adapt and understand the movements. But the game against Como helped him integrate more. Today, unlike before that match, I have no concerns about starting him or bringing him on as a substitute. I’ve seen that he has absorbed certain concepts. He is a serious guy, and I’m very pleased.”

Conte was asked whether the game against Inter would be decisive in the race for the title.

“In general, I’d say it does affect the standings because there are three points at stake, and many teams are close to each other, so it does have an impact from that perspective,” he replied.

“My players shouldn’t think based on pressure, whether they are stronger or weaker on paper, or whether their ambitions change every year. We are also growing in this aspect, always setting the highest objective for ourselves. Sometimes we achieve it, sometimes we don’t.

“The important thing is to walk away knowing we gave everything. If we lose, it should be because the opponent was better, not because they had more determination or desire, that would bother me a lot,” the Italian tactician continued.

“You can win or lose, but even in defeat, which we must hate, we need to lose in the right way. Like when Atalanta won here, or against Lazio, which I saw as a draw but they won. We still applauded the opponents.

“Against Como, we had something to complain about, and I pointed it out because I have an honest and direct relationship with the players. I have no filter, I am as they see me. Now we have a beautiful match ahead of us, a top match that we fully deserve to play because we put everything into it. Now, we’ll see who is better.”

Napoli have fumbled their lead in the last four matches, where they collected just three points. Conte, however, said he had faced a tougher month than February.

“August was the toughest,” he said, laughing. “February was a walk in the park.”

Conte referred to the club’s transfer activity with the Partenopei signing three players in the final days of the summer transfer window: Romelu Lukaku, Scott McTominay and Gilmour.

Lastly, Conte spoke about Giacomo Raspadori, who scored two goals in the last two Napoli games.

“Jack can play as a second striker, an attacking midfielder, or even an offensive central midfielder. He’s the most technically gifted of the three midfielders, with a playmaker, a box-to-box player, and one in between,” said Conte.

“He can play as a mezzala [box-to-box] because he covers more than 12 km per game. He is not a winger, putting him there would make him struggle. Every coach should respect the players’ characteristics.

“You can’t just give him a token role to get him on the pitch if it hurts the team. Jack has great quality. In a 4-3-3, for me, he is the alternative to McTominay or Anguissa, to add quality to the game and have someone with a natural instinct for scoring.”