The Azzurri meet Atalanta in a big showdown at the top of the table on Saturday, but Conte's push was dominated by Kvara's departure.
Is the match or the farewell of the most important player more sensational?
“We achieved 47 points with great work, now we focus on Kvara, but if we objectively analyze this team compared to last year, it is without three players, Osimhen, Kvara and Zielinski, four with Kim compared to the Scudetto. It is objective, then everyone can have their say and say that it is stronger, it comes out stronger, weakened, it needs this or that, but I also think of Mario Rui who played in the year of the Scudetto.
“Even Elmas, yes. They say there is the backbone, but now it is a different Napoli. With the departure of Kvara it is different from that of the Scudetto and last year it did not have a good championship. We have to keep working because we know that the work has brought us there for a long time, perhaps we were the team that was in the lead most often, the credit must be given to the work, to the boys, and at the same time we must not forget that it is again a Napoli compared to two years ago, now even more without another key player and we face the remaining eighteen games.”
With Nere's eleven goals in five games, is he the post-Kvara or do you expect something from the club?
“You have to ask the club, the director. I repeat that I came here to try to help Napoli in a difficult moment. I married this club, this situation, I had the pleasure of living an experience in a city like Naples, with all this passion We try to do things in the best way, we know what our limits are compared to other clubs, but I always say that we have to be ambitious, otherwise there would not be that desire and determination to work and try to get to the top of the championship to belong.
“Head down and kick, whatever happens, some things we can control, some we can't and we don't waste energy. I have to give it all to the team. Today I have to be focused on the team, we are doing something good .” and I have to protect it, these guys deserve it.”
After the first meeting you said that Atalanta 'is now stronger than us'. In 2 months 7 wins out of 9 and +4 in the rankings, is there still a gap?
“You look at our statistics, but they have won 11… they were strong and they have remained strong, they are aware that they are strong because they won the Europa League and beat the German champions. That is already for a long time, but when you win you realize that you can compete with anyone.
“They also showed it against Real, even if they lost the game, but it was wide open. That said, we have to focus on ourselves, not on them. We have grown since the last game against them and we have to continue in the competition.” I don't know how it will end, but we also need these away games against strong teams to measure ourselves, to understand how much is missing, how much work needs to be done to get closer and hope to win one day. “
Kvara was iconic, can you generate another reaction from the team?
“I said January was special, it's called the transfer market, so one-two, whoever leaves, whoever comes in… today we are halfway through the month and four players have already left, Caprile, Folorunsho, Zerbin yesterday and Kvara Since locker room dynamics and human dynamics also create relationships between them, it is inevitable that such strong shocks can cause minor imbalances.
“Having said that, we will have to be good at maintaining the unity that was created until January 1. I have always said that the points we have achieved are the result of 24 players, and not 11 who played. We should be good too.” with the new ones, and I must say that I am satisfied because they have the spirit, but they have to adapt to the new methodology and tactical situations and we will have to recreate that alchemy to compensate also for the absence of Kvara, but we have never complained: this is a football dynamic that existed in the past and I hope there will be less of it in the future (laughs).”
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