Napoli got absolutely rocked at home by Como on Sunday, suffering a brutal 2-1 loss where all the scoring action went down in the first half. It was a gut punch, with Como taking the lead twice, first with Martin Baturina, then the winner from Anastasios Douvikas right before the break, after Rasmus Hojlund had snagged an equalizer for the Partenopei. And you know what? Manager Massimiliano Allegri isn’t holding back, calling out his team for being “too soft,” especially on defense. You can practically hear the frustration boiling over.
“Too Soft” Is the New Nightmare
Allegri didn’t mince words after that shocking defeat. He told DAZN, “At times we are too soft; on the other hand, we also had several chances.” But the “main thing” was how they gave up those goals. He specifically pointed to the second one, saying, “You can’t give away two chances in twenty seconds.” Seriously? Twenty seconds? That’s just wild. The manager insists they need to figure out when to play their way out of trouble and when to just get the job done defensively. He even called out several misplaced passes, showing a technical sloppiness that clearly contributed to the mess. This team needs to be way more attentive when defending, especially heading into the break. You give up a corner or a shot, you gotta make sure you’re still tied. That’s just fundamental.
McTominay’s Blisters and a Long-Awaited Return
Adding to the woes, Allegri revealed that Scott McTominay isn’t fully fit. Turns out, the man’s been battling “blisters” that have messed with him in both games and training, forcing him to train on a limited basis. It’s tough when a key player can’t give 100%, and it showed when McTominay was pulled before the hour mark, which Allegri admitted was “quite uncommon to see in the previous two campaigns under Antonio Conte.” They’re hoping to get him back to top condition ASAP. On the bright side, Kevin De Bruyne came in during the second half and is “feeling better,” which is a small relief. Plus, David Neres returned to action in the 80th minute, getting his first minutes in eight months. Talk about a long road back! Allegri noted that Noa Lang played a “good game” on the left flank, so at least there’s a positive takeaway on the personnel front.
Big Tests Looming
Allegri knows it’s “more difficult to recover at this point in the season,” and he’s right. They’ve gotta tighten up, and fast. He says these upcoming games against Inter and Arsenal won’t “define” Napoli’s season, but man, they’re going to be massive tests for whether they can fix this “too soft” problem he’s talking about. They’ve gotta prove they’re tougher on the road against Inter next Saturday for their next Serie A match, and then it’s big time for their Champions League opener at home against Arsenal on September 9. That’s a huge stage to show they’ve actually tightened things up. No more being “too soft,” fellas.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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