New Napoli boss Francesco Calzona warned that he will ‘only keep players on the pitch who are doing well’ following their 1-1 draw with Barcelona. The Parteopei struggled to get a foothold in the early part of the game before going behind to a Robert Lewandowski opener, eventually snatching an equaliser through Victor Osimhen. Speaking to Amazon Prime in the post-match, Calzona explained his tactical choices and insisted that he will not look at the names of players when taking them off if they are performing poorly:
“We have a lot to work on, but I complimented the boys. The team has regained the desire to fight. Tactically, it’s clear, we need to take steps forward. But on the field, there were players who weren’t feeling great after the Africa Cup of Nations. When they feel better, I will expect more from them. We conceded changes of play, balls between the lines, and doing that against a top-level team can be costly.”
On substitutions: “I wanted to take Osimhen off earlier, for a tactical reason I waited, but the goal didn’t change my mind. Simeone came on well and created a half-chance. On the field, I keep the players who perform well, I don’t think about the name. Politano had a fantastic game; I kept him on the field as long as I could because he was defending well, with great vigor. Xavi complimented me, he said it wasn’t easy after two days. I complimented him; they play beautiful football, they don’t even raise the ball by ten centimeters.”
“In the end, the team believed they could win the game. This is an important sign; usually, in the final stages, there is a kind of decline. I liked the spirit a lot. I saw players who gave their all and didn’t want to lose against a very strong opponent. There was a lot of disorder on the field, which I didn’t like, but I can understand the boys; miracles cannot be performed in two days. I am very happy with those who came on later; they gave a new boost to the team.”
Finally, Calzona concluded by talking about Napoli’s reaction: “In the first half-hour, we suffered a lot, for the reasons already mentioned. Then we reacted, even in disorder; having this quality is essential, fighting until the ninety-fifth minute against a team of this caliber makes me satisfied.”
