Juventus – I LOVE Napoli

Napoli needs to improve

Napoli manager Carlo Ancelotti wants his team to improve. He said that their form has not been good in recent weeks and this has caused them to lose some points on Juventus. Indeed Napoli is currently eight points behind Juventus in Serie A and Carlo Ancelotti said that this is not good enough.

The former Chelsea manager said that the objective of the team was to challenge for the title and that they are far from being to do this at the moment. He said that the team needs to improve on the pitch and that the players need to work harder when they do not have the ball. He said that they have been guilty sometimes of waiting for the ball to arrive at their feet and not putting pressure on the opposition.

Carlo Ancelotti said that there is so much potential in the team and that at the moment he feels that they are underperforming. He said that they have to work on keeping possession of the ball and make sure that they do not give their opponents too much time on the ball.

“Carlo Ancelotti said that Napoli also has a good chance in the Champions League “ and that they should work first on getting out of their group. He “believes that the players “want to do well and that they desire to win trophies.

He said that they have made a slow start to the season and that they now have to be more consistent if they want to catch Juventus. He said that they need to learn how to kill off games and make sure that they do not underestimate opponents. Carlo Ancelotti said that they have lost so many points against teams that they thought they could beat easily and this is the main reason why they are eight points behind.

Napoli sitting in all too familiar position

Napoli have found themselves in an all too familiar position in pursuit of Juventus at the top of Serie A in the early stages of the campaign. Under Maurizio Sarri, the club almost ended the Bianconeri’s stranglehold on Italian football, only to lose out on the crown by four points. Their margin for error was non-existent and defeats at the hands of Roma and Fiorentina were to loom large. Sarri left Gil Azzurri at the end of the campaign to join Chelsea, while a former Blues manager Carlo Ancelotti made the decision to move to the Stadio San Paolo.

Early defeats to Sampdoria and to Juve have knocked them off the pace of Massimiliano Allegri’s side. Inter have joined the pursuit of Juventus at the top of the table, and although both teams have played well, the addition of Cristiano Ronaldo has appeared to make the Bianconeri almost unstoppable. The Portuguese has already played an important role for his team, saving them against Empoli on the road. It seems no matter what Ancelotti and his team do, they will always be playing catch up to Ronaldo and company.

Napoli sitting in all too familiar position

Napoli are six points off the pace so hope remains, with the club being backed in the latest Serie A betting odds at 13/2 to win the title. However, one of the questions will be whether that Juve can maintain their form over the course of the campaign and how players like Ronaldo, Mario Mandzukic and Giorgio Chiellini hold up with the rigours of the domestic and European seasons. Gli Azzurri do have the benefit of youth in their ranks at key positions, which could make a huge difference come the end of the term. It could be argued that the Juve dynasty is nearing its end, with the signing of Ronaldo used only to secure their ‘white whale’ – the Champions League.

Ancelotti’s side boast arguably the best defender in the world in Kalidou Koulibaly, who is in the prime of his career at the age of 27. Nikola Maksimovic, Mario Rui and Elseid Hysaj are all solid players and will improve with further time under Ancelotti’s tutelage. Sarri played an expansive style of football whereas Ancelotti is more traditional for Italian football. It could well make the difference in closing out matches where remaining tight at the back is more important than searching for further goals. Napoli are blessed with young talent in the middle of the park as well, with only Marek Hamsik being older than the age of 28. Between Allan, Piotr Zielinski and Fabian Ruiz there is stamina and quality to match Juve in the middle of the park.

The forward line is the main difference between Napoli and Juve. Dries Mertens, Jose Callejon and Lorenzo Insigne are talented players, but their rivals have supreme quality in the form of Ronaldo, Mandzukic and Paulo Dybala. Until Ronaldo and Mandzukic are no longer present in the Juve ranks, Allegri’s men hold a crucial advantage. In two areas of the field, Napoli have comparable talent along with a coach that boasts arguably a more impressive record than his counterpart. The final third is the most important aspect of the field and it may be the reason why Napoli fall short again.

Lazio president: Sergej Milinkovic-Savic better than Paul Pogba

Lazio president Claudio Lotito has insisted that Sergej Milinkovic-Savic is a much better footballer than Manchester United’s Paul Pogba. The Serbia international has been regularly linked with a move away from Rome this summer but Lotito has indicated that the midfielder is not for sale unless a significant offer is made before the transfer deadline.

Speaking to Corriere della Sera, he said: “Sergej is the best young player on world scene right now, with huge potential. I have not received any official bids from AC Milan or Juventus, let alone Madrid or United. Of course, I’m not pushing to sell him but if you ask me how much he is worth then I remember last year I turned down a €110m (£99m) offer. How much was Pogba sold to Manchester for? €105m? (£94.4m) Milinkovic-Savic is worth more because he is much better and stronger. And to be clear, I’m not really interested in loan-type arrangements either.”

Lazio president: Sergej Milinkovic-Savic better than Paul Pogba

Milinkovic-Savic had a strong season with“ Lazio last term where he contributed 14 goals and a further six assists across all competitions.“ Despite this, Lazio could not secure their aim of Champions League football after they were beaten to the fourth position by Inter Milan on the head-to-head record last season.

With the Italian transfer window closing on “Friday, Lazio have yet“ to receive any significant offers for the Serbia international and barring a late approach from the likes of Real Madrid, the midfielder appears more or less certain to remain with the club. Meanwhile, the Capital outfit have been offered a difficult start to the new Serie A season and they are scheduled to face Napoli in the season opener. Thereafter, they have another difficult challenge against reigning champions Juventus and a poor start may witness them lying at the bottom end of the standings.

Kalidou Koulibaly: Napoli Have Nothing To Lose

Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly has insisted that his side have nothing to lose as they head into the final four fixtures of the Serie A campaign. The Naples outfit looked down and out in the pursuit of the league title earlier this month but their victory over Juventus suddenly sees them with a strong chance of lifting the Italian crown.

Maurizio Sarri’s side appeared on course to pick up a draw during their recent visit to Turin but Koulibaly came with a dramatic headed winner to ensure a close 1-0 win for the visitors. As a result, Juventus’ lead at the top has been cut short to just one point and Koulibaly believes Napoli can overturn the deficit in the remaining four games.

He said: “We have nothing left to lose with regards to the Scudetto race after beating Juve. We must keep winning starting against Fiorentina. The Scudetto would be a historic achievement for Napoli because they haven’t won it since 1990, so we’ll do everything to make it happen.We’re happy with what we’re doing. Many fans welcomed us at the airport on their return from Turin. We wondered what would happen in the event of the Italy flag on our shirts…”

Both teams face sides in the top-half of the table in the coming weeks but Juventus, in particular, have a much difficult schedule with a couple of tricky away trips to AS Roma and Inter Milan. As such, Napoli’s chances of winning the Scudetto are likely to increase and they need to maintain a perfect record in the remaining weeks in order to end their 28-year wait for the title.

Meanwhile, Koulibaly could be spending his final season with Napoli amid the current speculation over his future. The Senegal international has long been linked with a move to Chelsea and reports suggest that the Blues could be prepared to pay a club-record £65m in order to lure him to Stamford Bridge.

Maurizio Sarri earns Seria A Coach of the Year award

Napoli’s Maurizio Sarri was named as the best coach of the top tier Italian football league, Serie A for the season of 2016-17 even though his team could only snatch the 3rd spot.

Surprisingly, he received more votes than MassimilianoAllegri who was able to guide Juventus to their 6th successive Serie A title. Maurizio Sarri received 25 votes of 61 votes which was only 3 more votes than his fellow contender Allegri who could not win it for a 2nd successive year.

Napoli’s Maurizio Sarri was named as the best coach of the top tier Italian football league, Serie A for the season of 2016-17 even though his team could only snatch the 3rd spot.

Maurizio Sarri earns Seria A Coach of the Year award

Upon receiving the individual award, Maurizio Sarri expressed his thoughts and emotions as the 58 year old Italian tactician said: “Usually getting an award doesn’t give me particular satisfaction, I often consider it as time taken away from my work but this gives me enthusiasm and happiness, and I think that’s because it was a decision made by my colleagues.”

Previously to this latest 2016-17 edition of the Serie A Coach of the Year award, it had been won by tacticians who had been in charge of Juventus for successive seasons.

Antonio Conte won it during the season of 2011-12 and he consecutively won it until the season of 2013-14. When Allegri was elected as the coach of Juventus, he continued the domination by lifting it himself.

Maurizio Sarri was the 1st coach to end this recent dominance that the head chiefs of Juventus have been displaying. He is also the 1st coach ever in the history of Napoli to win this award and it’s because of these reasons that the 58 year old tactician is being praised so highly as well as being rumored on signing a new contract extension with Napoli as fans and players of the club want to see remaining at the Sao Paolo Stadium on a longer term deal.

Juventus retains their Place in Table

Juventus retained their place at the top of the Italian Serie A table following a mammoth 4-1 win over arch rivals Torino.

Even though the opposition have been flirting with relegation for much of the campaign, this was always going to be a tough match for Juventus given the history between the two teams. The game started in the best possible manner for the away team, who took the lead through Paul Pogba. Sami Khedira doubled the advantage just before half-time. A penalty converted by Belotti just after the half-time break just proved to be a consolation for the home team, as the second-half turned out into a rout.

Manager Massimiliano Allegri was especially happy with the way his team managed this victory just days after an exit from the Champions League at the hands of Bayern Munich. Juventus were extremely disappointed to accept this defeat after having come very close towards sealing a place in the quarter-finals. Alvaro Morata has struggled to hit the goalscoring form throughout the campaign, but he took his tally to six league goals in 28 appearances with a brace against Torino. Allegri will be hoping that this sparks a run of goals from the striker, who was crucial in the club’s appearance in the Champions League last season.

“What happened in Munich needed to be put to one side and we had to show the strength to get up again like men and move on. The team played well today and deserved to win, but there’s still room for improvement in certain areas. Sometimes we choose to do the luxurious when in fact the match is not as easy as it may seem and we need to be better at controlling the ball in situations like these,” said Allegri. Morata also claimed that this win can boast of their season.

NAPOLI WILL CHALLENGE

Former Napoli legend Diego Maradona has said that the club should be troubling Juventus in every single trophy from here on in, according to the Man Utd News website.

Napoli beat Juventus in the final of the Coppa Italia to claim one of the major trophies during a season. The Coppa Italia success was their first major trophy in 22 years. Diego Maradona played for the club during the 1980s, in what is thought as the most glorious era in the club’s history. Now, Maradona has predicted that Napoli will once again dominate Italian football, and the match against Juventus is just the start of it.

Napoli beat Juventus 2-0 in what will be the final match for Juventus legend Alessandro del Piero, who joined the club back in 1993. The Argentine watched the 2-0 win for Napoli on television and has said that they should trouble Juventus for many more years to come. Maradona also said that he would have loved to return to the Italy in order to watch the match, but as he is currently involved in tax evasion probes, he was unable to attend the match. However, he has said that Napoli are now close to where they should belong.

“Napoli’s great victory over Juventus thrilled me as much as the days when I was playing. Their Coppa Italia triumph was decisive. When there is a trophy up for grabs, the Bianconeri must always deal with the Azzurri! It was like reliving the triumphs of 25 years ago. But Napoli, like me at the time, have a great advantage: the most formidable public in the world. I would like to be present at any such celebrations but do not know if my schedule here in Abu Dhabi will allow it, and I cannot renege on my duties as a coach,” said Maradona.

HAMSIK INVOKES CITY WIN

Napoli midfielder Marek Hamsik has said that Napoli need to repeat the same kind of performance they put in against Manchester City to have any scent of victory against Juventus. Napoli will be facing the League leaders during the week, and it is a match Hamsik is looking forward to very much.

Napoli will be facing Juventus in the midweek match, which leaves them with very little time to recuperate from the weekend’s match. They defeated Manchester City last week in a thrilling encounter in the group stages of the Champions League. This has put them in a good position to qualify for the knockout stages of the Champions League.

It seems that one of the main aims of Napoli this season is to do well in the Champions League this season, as they do not always qualify for this elite European competition. The match against Juventus, though, should put the focus back into the domestic campaign.

When asked about the match against Juventus, Marek Hamsik said, “We will have to be at our very best in order to beat Juventus. And I’m not just talking about myself, Edinson Cavani and Ezequiel Lavezzi. We need a perfect team performance. We have shown in the past what we can do as a team and we have to repeat that on Tuesday.”

Despite making a lot of ground in the Champions League, Napoli have been struggling in the domestic campaign. They have just 16 points in the 11 matches so far. As a result, they now find themselves only in the eighth position far behind the leaders Juventus. Given that there are no European matches until next week, one can safely say that Napoli will be putting all their efforts in the match against Juventus, which may prove crucial for the title race.