Inter manager Antonio Conte has heaped praise upon Napoli after they inflicted just Inter’s second domestic defeat on them in Wednesday night’s Coppa Italia semi final first leg at San Siro.

The Partenopei took the lead through midfielder Fabian Ruiz just before the hour mark and the Spaniard’s goal proved to be the only one of the game as the Stadio San Paolo won 1-0.

Thanks to this result, Napoli now have the advantage heading into the second leg of this tie which is due to take place at the beginning of next month.

Conte started the interview with Inter official club broadcaster Inter TV by praising Napoli and discussing how they set up which ultimately made things very difficult for his side.

“Gattuso rightly spoke of a strong Inter, but I reiterate that in my opinion Napoli have the best squad in the league after Juventus, despite the fact they have performed below expectations this season.

“They are a team who has beaten Liverpool in the Champions League and Juventus and Lazio in the league and it means that they have important values.

“Let’s not forget that Napoli has been Juventus’ main opponent in recent years. Today they played a very defensive match. We faced ten men behind the ball, Mertens marked Brozovic. All in all we would have deserved more.”

The former Italian national team manager then went on to speak about his own side’s performance in the match and how big an affect Sunday’s Derby della Madonnina had on the game.

“The derby took away a lot of nervous energy, this is without a doubt. Having said that, I changed five players just to give more physical and mental energies. I don’t think the intensity was lacking but in my opinion we moved the ball a little too slow at times.

“When you face quality teams that sacrifice themselves and all stand behind the ball, it becomes difficult. Gattuso was good at convicing his players to defend all together.”

The post Inter Manager Conte: “Napoli Have The Best Squad In The League After Juventus, The Milan Derby Took Away A Lot Of Nervous Energy” appeared first on Sempreinter.

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