Cristian Stellini, Antonio Conte's assistant on the Napoli bench, doesn't hide after the 1-1 draw at the Dall'Ara against an aggressive Bologna: speaking to DAZN, the coach offered a lucid but also pungent analysis, highlighting the limitations seen in the second half by his team.
“We had a great first half. We had prepared an aggressive match, made of play, movement and a lot of intensity”, Stellini explained. “In the second half we lacked something. We probably paid more attention to defending ourselves than playing the ball. When you lose rhythm against healthy teams like Bologna, you struggle to recover”.
The assistant coach from Naples insisted on the key concept: Napoli's identity cannot ignore high pressure and proactive play. “We are a team that must always play at high intensity. We must improve our mentality and desire to play the ball. Bologna pressed us hard and the distances lengthened. For this reason Lukaku was anticipated several times in the second half”. Looking ahead to the season finale, Stellini does not back down, but reiterates the real objectives: “We want to fight for something important.”
"But we have to remember where we started from: the goal was to get back into the top four. If we grow mentally, we can also dream". Finally, an update on the physical conditions of some key elements: “McTominay took a hit to the thigh and one to the side. He was in pain and couldn’t run. Buongiorno warmed up, because we wanted to keep him ready in case of an emergency”.
Article published on 7 April 2025 - 23:40
Stellini's analysis was interesting and highlights the problems the team had in the second half. It is important to maintain intensity, but sometimes it is difficult when the opponent presses so much.