Coach Antonio Conte has declared that “second place is first place for losers”, but emphasizes that Napoli has not yet lost hope of catching Inter, while explaining that the tactics against Lazio are dictated by the absences.
The injury crisis continues for the Neapolitans. Although Amir Rrahmani has returned to the bench, the team is still without Romelu Lukaku, Giovanni Di Lorenzo, David Neres and Antonio Vergara.
Sam Beukema is preferred over Juan Jesus, after the latter’s mistakes in the last match against Parma.
“It’s a technical decision, nothing special. It’s normal for players to rotate during the season, as Amir Rrahmani and Giovanni Di Lorenzo are not ready yet, so it’s important to have options.”
Kevin De Bruyne and Scott McTominay have been used in support of Rasmus Hojlund, in a 3-4-2-1 formation.
“The system depends only on the fact that we don’t have a full-back available at the moment. Without Di Lorenzo it’s difficult to think of another scheme. Moreover, this tactic has helped us in an emergency situation, so I don’t see any reason for radical changes now.”
“Of course, Di Lorenzo’s injury is a big blow because he can play both in a three-man defence and as a full-back. He has played almost all the time and now, after this knee problem, we don’t have anyone else with his characteristics in the squad.”
“We will also look at tactics when Vergara recovers and is ready.”
Napoli know that a 1-1 draw with Parma last week has all but ended their title hopes, especially after Inter’s 3-0 win over Cagliari temporarily moved the Nerazzurri 12 points clear.
Now, “Partenopei” must also look behind them to secure second place and qualification for the Champions League, as they have already won the Italian Super Cup.
“Second place is first place for losers, so I’m not sure if second or third place makes much difference – it only matters who qualifies for the Champions League,” Conte said with a wry smile.
“We are currently 12 points behind Inter and we saw very clearly against Parma that we cannot make mistakes, otherwise we lose points. Our objective is to give our best, to look ahead, but also to keep an eye on the back, because one or two mistakes can change a lot of things.”
