Former Serie A champions Napoli picked up a key 3-0 win over Bologna in the Serie A today and it was their first win under Antonio Conte.
The Partenopei had lost 3-0 to Verona in their first game, as they ‘melted like ice under the sun’ in the words of their own manager. They were without any new signings in the previous game and barely looked like a Conte team, as Verona ran them ragged in the 2nd half.
Today was much different though, as they looked like a Conte side and played through the lines quickly and found the two behind the striker while keeping a high tempo. It wasn’t dour at all and the instruction clearly seemed to be to find the two behind striker Giacomo Raspadori.
They closed out the game in Conte style too, going to a 5-3-2 lowblock after being 1-0 up and killed the game on the transition, as Khvicha Kvaratskhelia scored a wonderful second goal. Giovanni Simeone wrapped it up in stoppage as David Neres grabbed an assist.
More than that, the win comes at a crucial point. With new signings Romelu Lukaku, Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour coming in, they come into a happier space and into a team that is playing like a Conte team – finally. That settled environment will help them settle quickly, while also giving Conte less worries about where they could fit in.
A failure to win today would’ve put more pressure on Conte and added pressure on the new signings to perform.
Kaustubh Pandey I GIFN