Napoli head coach Antonio Conte expressed delight with his side’s display in their 3-1 triumph at Udinese, insisting on more improvement to come.
The Italian lauded his team’s resilience against a tough Udinese side, praising Napoli’s strong response following recent disappointments, including consecutive defeats to Lazio which saw they bundled out of the Coppa Italia and surrender their Serie A lead.
“Udinese are a very good side and I saw a strong response from my boys,” Conte said to DAZN.
“We have to be realistic, fearless and understand that to win you have to take control of the game, as we did today.”
Udinese took the lead after Florian Thauvin scored from the rebound after Alex Meret saved his penalty. However, a Romelu Lukaku strike, Lautaro Giannetti’s own goal and a late Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa goal completed the comeback for Napoli.
For Conte, the scoreline in the first half did not tell the story of his side’s dominance in the first half.
“We controlled the game from start to finish, even though we were 1-0 down. The penalty didn’t change the game for us.
“We created chances in the first half and we must continue to play that kind of football. Keeping possession, dominating the game, pressing high and dictating the game is crucial for us,” he added.
Following the win, Napoli remain two points behind Serie A leaders Atalanta, who beat 1-0 Cagliari earlier on Saturday. Conte’s title-chasing charges battle Genoa next in a week’s time.
