Antonio Conte raises the bar

After his Napoli team won 2-0 at home against AC Milan, it is no longer time for Antonio COnte to hide. In a press conference, the partenopei coach took stock of the situation, also updating the basic goal that at the beginning of the season was the club’s return to one of the European cups.

“No one wants to play hide-and-seek,” the Salento coach remarked.

We are doing something incredible, I did not expect to have 25 points after ten days. At the beginning of the year the goal was to return to Europe, now it becomes getting back into the Champions League. Clearly we have to be careful, five or six other teams want to go to Europe through the front door”.

“To win in Naples would be something incredible,” Conte added. We have realistically given ourselves three years and we have to avoid getting too caught up in enthusiasm: we all know how it’è went last year here in Naples. We are rebuilding something but it will take time, miracles do not happen every day”.

Having overcome a complicated approach to the Conte era (Coppa Italia round passed only on penalties against Modena, first championship round closed with a heavy 0-3 against Hellas Verona), Napoli collected nine victories in the next ten games between the league and the national cup: the only slowdown last September 21 at home to Juventus, 0-0 the final score.

Updated Serie A standings and scorers

Luca Banchi chews bitterly on his Virtus Bologna’s defeat

It’s a rather bitter Luca Banchi who spoke after the 84-87 loss between his Virtus Bologna and Bayern in the sixth day of the basketball Euroleague. A result that forces the Felsinei to deal with the last position in the continental competition, tied with Olimpia Milano and Alba Berlin.

“Tough game, tough defeat, game decided at the last possession – said the coach of the Black Vu’s. We started very well, then Bayern è came back down and controlled second and third quarter, using our mistakes in their favor. Then we came back well in the game and Bayern è was more precise in handling the last possessions than we”.

“Sometimes we should also play with an ounce of recklessness,” he added, “in some moments I saw resignation that then è disappeared completely. We have to build our DNA that gives us the strength to react in situations like tonight, against talented opponents. At the beginning of the third quarter we thought we would get caught up in the eagerness to recover: we have to have determination and balance, we have all the qualities to do that. We had turned it over completely, giving the feeling that we had it completely in hand”.

“We are commenting on a defeat, again, in a sprint, in a game in which we had found the strength to turn it around. Tonight, despite the’emergency, we went and found a way to put this game back on its feet: we keep confidence and awareness in our means” concluded Banchi.

Paulo Fonseca doesn’t want to make dramas

Despite the 2-0 defeat at home against Napoli, Paulo Fonseca does not want to make dramas and, indeed, revives his Milan team’s ambitions to fight for the Scudetto, speaking to the microphones of ‘Dazn’ after the match played on Tuesday night at San Siro. The Rossoneri are on their third defeat in the last five matches, between Italy and Europe.

“I am responsible for what happens on the field,” the Portuguese coach began, “and this time too I take responsibility. Forò itè not easy to start a game against such a team and already go under, if we see the game we had several chances, we è only missed the goal”.

“Scudetto? I can&#39t say I don&#39t believe in it,&#39 added Fonseca, displacing those who expected that, given the momentary eighth place, we could start lowering the bar.

I have never seen us win or lose a championship after nine games, we have to keep growing and I see positive signs. Clearly we will need to string together positive results if we want to compete for first place”.

“My concern è related to the two goals taken, the result of a defensive management that we will have to revise – explained again the former coach, among others, of Roma and Lille -. In attack we play well, often forò we miss the decisive action. Forò we played a lot in the Napoli half of the field, we were not lucky”.