Napoli manager Antonio Conte had no interest in speaking about the transfer window and only wanted to talk about football and their next Serie A game with Bologna, when he faced reporters on Friday. His side suffered a 3-0 loss at Hellas Verona on the opening day and after fielding question after question regarding the club’s ambitions in the transfer market before that game, he was in no mood for a repeat.
“Let’s redirect the press conference immediately,” Conte told reporters. “Last week we had a press conference where we spoke only about the transfer market. I received zero questions about Verona, or maybe one, there was no talk of football, and then what happened, happened. Regarding the market you need to ask the club, but I see you are quite informed because I also read about it through you. Let’s focus everything around the game, it’s more important for me.”
Napoli, who finished 10th last season having won the Scudetto the previous campaign, have been relatively quiet on the transfer front as they wait for an acceptable offer for want-away striker Victor Osimhen.
Conte, who took charge in June, had spoken about needing to reconstruct at the club, and perhaps the humbling at Verona underlined that. “Maybe it was good that this blow came immediately, it brought us back to reality, me, the club and fans, the players perhaps,” Conte said.
“What makes me happy is to have perceived that the players understood well what happened, I saw in them great motivation to start again and get out of these difficulties. When things go well, everyone is good, in difficulties you see real men. We can also lose, but not in that way.”
Conte now wants everyone to put that game behind them as they prepare to host Bologna tomorrow, a team who finished fifth last season to qualify for the Champions League.
“I understand the difficulties, the second half in Verona can leave an aftermath, but we don’t have time, not on the pitch and not in the stands,” he said. “There is an important game, three points, and all of us have to send a signal.”
Okafor to replace injured Morata
Noah Okafor is set to start up front for AC Milan in their Serie A game against Parma after the injury to Alvaro Morata, manager Paulo Fonseca said. Morata, who joined Milan in July, came off the bench to score on his debut in the 2-2 draw with Torino last weekend, but is expected to be out for at least three weeks with a thigh injury.
Okafor also came on as a substitute and scored the equaliser as Milan came back from two goals down, and the Swiss forward has earned himself a starting place for Saturday’s trip to Parma, with Luka Jovic dropping to the bench.
Morata had been struggling with a muscular problem when he arrived at Milan after captaining Spain to their Euro 2024 win. Another option up front could have been 16-year-old Francesco Camarda, who last year became the youngest-ever player in Serie A, at 15 years, eight months and 15 days old.
Fixtures (times GMT)
Saturday: Parma v AC Milan, Udinese v Lazio (1630), Monza v Genoa, Inter Milan v Lecce (1845)
Sunday: Fiorentina v Venezia, Torino v Atalanta (1630), Roma v Empoli, Napoli v Bologna (1845)
Monday: Cagliari v Como (1630), Verona v Juventus (1845)
Napoli manager Antonio Conte
