Inter-Napoli, Conte: “They are stronger, but we want to stay first in the standings”
Inter-Napoli, Conte: “They are stronger, but we want to stay first in the standings”
Despite the debacle with Atalanta, the Italian coach sounds the charge: “We have to grow, but we won’t give up. De Laurentiis? I don’t know what he said and in any case I won’t comment”

Antonio Conte (Ansa)

Naples, November 8, 2024 – For captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo the challenge in the house ofInter, scheduled Sunday, November 10 20.45, it happens at the right time to take the pulse of the Napoli after the defeat with theAtalanta: for Antonio Conte the return to the Meazza as an ex it will be even richer in meaning.

Against Inter at the top of the table
“It always has a certain effect to be back in a familiar place: it’s a load of emotions and memories that makes you go back in time. It will be nice to return to San Siro, where I spent two happy years: in the first we came second in the rankings losing the final of Europa League, while in the second we won the championship. It was a beautiful experience that I carry with me together with all the people I met”. If this is the past, the present and the future of Tale they are called Napoli, a square that has come back a little with its feet on the ground after the lesson given to the Maradona dall ‘Atalanta in the last round: for some perhaps a useful step to not lose contact with reality, for others instead such an abrupt braking, combined with the always cautious words of the Salento coach, can dampen the enthusiasm too much. Then there is Aurelio De Laurentiis, who surprisingly joined his coach’s thoughts after having almost winked at the dream of the Scudetto at the beginning of the Azzurri’s positive streak, which in fact lasted almost a quarter. “I don’t know what the president said and, in any case, a coach shouldn’t comment, but listen and move on. I met him last week and he didn’t say anything in particular. These are his considerations, he’s the boss and it’s right that he expresses what he thinks: I’m at a lower level and I will never comment on his words”. Regardless of points of view, after a defeat to Napoli we need to raise our heads regardless of what is, or isn’t, the real seasonal objective. “The three points are always important. We will face a team that today, for everything they have shown, is the strongest: they have worked very well and now, compared to the others, they are certainly in a higher position. Credit must be given to the club and the coach for the work done, without forgetting the role of the players, who have grown a lot, but we will not go there to be extras or to immediately wave the white flag: we will go to Meazza convinced that we can have our say, and then we’ll see what comes of it. We’re preparing well, as we always do, with the goal of not leaving the points there before even playing. It will be an important test to evaluate our progress against the best, but don’t forget that we’re coming into this match as top of the table: it can mean everything or nothing, but we don’t want to leave this position”.

The Return of Lobotka
In short, for Tale to date theInter has something more especially in the long term, but its Napoli he has no intention of giving up despite the thud with theAtalanta, real or presumed values ​​and personal and corporate ambitions. The fact is that to attempt the second takeover San Siro after that reported against the Milan the Azzurri will need the best Romelu Lukaku, already in the sights of part of the square after a few performances a bit below par. “Now in every press conference there is a question about him and for me it becomes a bit annoying. The growth of Romelu depends on that of the team, because the individual is not so decisive in moving the values: the collective is the basis of everything and only at that moment can the players be exalted. If one doesn’t score then you wonder why, but I look at the team and see how they work during the week: I am confident and I prefer to see it like this, without talking about the individuals, for better or for worse, precisely out of respect for the group”. However, there are individuals and individuals and the absence of Stanislav Lobotka, net of the still excellent performance of the Napoli until the last shift and the good work done as a substitute by Billy gilmour, made itself heard. And this time Tale of individuals speaks, indeed. “The value of Lobotka we all know it and it is useless to underline it. If it happens, however, we must be good at finding something that can make up for the absences. I will never complain about it and, in this specific case, I think that gilmour has done very well in the context of a large squad that can make up for some injuries. Lobotka He has been training since midweek and we have managed him a bit: now he is fine, he has recovered and is available to start or not”. Not only the individuals but that group, in fact, so dear to Tale who now has to show that he can react at his best after the defeat againstAtalanta as it was, at the dawn of the championship, after the fall of the Bentegodi di Verona. “It was a normal week. We worked physically, tactically but also watched videos: we always analyse them, even after victories, let alone after a defeat in which we have to evaluate what worked and what didn’t and how much the strength of theAtalanta. That said, the boys are in good spirits and know that improvements come from the work done in training”. With the Nerazzurri Orobic archived, on the horizon are those of Simone Inzaghi: on paper, an even tougher opponent. “To put them in difficulty we will have to try to have the ball in the game, otherwise you risk acting as a sparring partner and that is not our idea. We will go there to measure our values ​​and I think that, beyond the result, the most important aspect is growth. We must improve on everything, not only in the defensive or offensive phase, and doing it at the top of the rankings means hunting for absolute excellence”.Read also – Cagliari-Milan, the probable formations: Camarda towards the debut. There is also Leao