Napoli manager Antonio Conte spoke to Camel Live in an interview after his side’s 3-2 defeat to former club Chelsea.
Antonio, how disappointed are you after Napoli’s elimination from the Champions League group stage?
Of course, I’m very disappointed. Not because of tonight’s game, though, because I thought we played an absolutely brilliant match against Chelsea. Don’t forget, we only had 13 fit players available—all the others were injured.
Even so, I think our performance today was far better than just a loss to Chelsea. The positive side, I believe, is that we have to keep pushing hard. On the other hand, the disappointment comes from the fact that I think the real reason for our elimination was the last game against Copenhagen.
We were leading 1-0 with 11 men against 10, and we let them equalize. I think that was the turning point that led to our elimination. Otherwise, this game would have been a lot easier for us.
At the same time, despite all the challenges this season, with many players suffering serious injuries, we still have to find a way forward. The team played really well, and I’m proud of my players. It’s not easy to play against Chelsea like this and push them to the brink.
I think we deserved a better result than a loss today.
I understand the difficulties brought by injuries, but what do you say to critics who claim Antonio Conte has great success in domestic leagues but not the same in European competitions?
In European competitions, I lost a UEFA Europa League final and also reached the semi-finals once. In the Champions League, I’ve made it to the quarter-finals. And don’t forget, I’ve only participated in this tournament seven times in total.
You know very well that if you want to succeed in this competition, you have to strive to be a top team—one that has a lot of money to invest, to build not just one team, but two, even two and a half teams, just like Chelsea.
If you look at the gap between us and them tonight, it’s just too big. We have to do our best, but you know very well that the final outcome of the Champions League is always the same for teams like us.
Let’s end on a positive note. Vegara is a player who cost no transfer fee, as he came through Napoli’s youth academy. I know you called him up to the first team during the summer training camp.Talk about this player, his impact, and his goal tonight.
I think he’s been a pleasant surprise for us. I believe the club should invest more in its youth academy. If Napoli wants to stay at the top, they need a top-class youth academy and a well-established training system.
Right now, we’re still at a disadvantage in this regard.
