The Livorno-born manager has previewed the big match against Napoli.

A win over Bodo/Glimt revived their Champions League campaign and eased the pressure on Massimiliano Allegri. Napoli now turn to Roma in the biggest fixture of the eighth round of the 2026/2027 Serie A season. The match kicks off tomorrow, Saturday 24 October, at 6pm at the Diego Armando Maradona stadium.

Speaking at a press conference, the Livorno-born manager discussed his selection dilemmas as he prepares to counter Gasperini and gave updates on the injured players.

De Bruyne as a deep-lying playmaker

"De Bruyne as a deep-lying playmaker? Players like that have the qualities and attributes to play comfortably in front of the defence or in a double pivot. I think he's already done it with Frosinone too.

Then I put him there and he played there. That's the most important thing, although we have important players in that position, such as Lobotka and Gilmour. Lobotka has played a lot of matches since the start of the year, including for the national team.

Managing the players is also very important. When you play matches close together, you need everyone. We have our final training session today, and then I'll decide."

How important is the match against Roma?

"There is a lot at stake. It’s an important match, and Napoli-Roma is always a big fixture. Roma have been doing well since last year. They qualified for the Champions League and are close to first place. Gasperini is doing an excellent job. They are a team with enthusiasm and good technical ability, so it will be complicated and difficult.

It’s important because, after three matches with two wins and a draw, we slipped up in Venice, and it would be good to get back on track in the league, knowing it won’t be easy. It’s not the last match of the season, deciding whether or not you qualify for the Champions League or win the league, but we’re at the eighth match and we need to improve the weakest aspects of our play."

Mistakes to improve on

"What is the biggest problem? When we are out of possession, they get through us too easily. We need to improve on that, and then we need consistency through results. Only with a run of results can you get back in touch.

Gasperini's teams force you to play because they mark you man-to-man. There is a lot of space, and the matches can be attractive and entertaining if you get results, but without them it becomes a problem... You need great technical ability, and it will take a lot of energy"

Rrahmani a doubt and the injured players

"Choices? We’ll see in defence. Apart from Rrahmani, who had a fever — we’ll see how he is today — everyone else is fine. The aim is to get all the players back. We have McTominay back after two months out; despite his two goals, he is still behind in his recovery. Anguissa played 60 minutes and we’ll see whether to start him because, as I said, he played 13 matches last year. It’s not like a machine that you switch on and it starts up again. We need to be good enough and fortunate enough to get them fit by playing them while still getting results.

We’ll also assess today whether to put Vergara on the bench. I let Badiashile recover after 3 consecutive matches. They are all getting back into good shape, and some need to recover mentally rather than physically."

The attack

"Hojlund went away on international duty having scored 2 goals in 4-5 games, and he scored for the national team. But he has started every game for Napoli and the national team since the beginning, apart from one half in Venice. I'm happy with what he's doing, though. He needs to stay calm. The important thing is that the team score; if Hojlund scores fewer goals and the team win, it's not as if we're angry...

Giovane is doing well. Lucca is a player with qualities, he belongs to Napoli and he is supported and helped. That's the beauty of football: one ball can turn a bad spell into a good one."

Results and morale

"The main thing is that when we are out of possession, especially when we are in our own half, we need to give the impression of being stronger. Then progress has to come through results. You can talk about good performances, but in the end, as I always say, the result shapes the assessment

Mood depends on results. If you get a result, you feel good afterwards and prepare for the following matches with a sense of calm. As for the match, we are certainly lucky: within three days we face two teams who play the same way, so by preparing for the game against Roma we will also be preparing for the one against Monza. We have been lucky"