Napoli manager Antonio Conte has tempered expectations despite his side’s 2-0 win over Monza that lifted them to the top of the Serie A table, Soccernet.football reports.
Goals from Matteo Politano and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia secured the victory at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, but Conte remains cautious about Napoli’s title prospects.
Napoli opened the scoring when Politano capitalised on a defensive error following a give-and-go attempt with Romelu Lukaku.
Alessandro Bianco’s interception inadvertently set up Politano, who fired home from a tight angle for his first goal since April.
The Azzurri doubled their lead after a high press forced Monza into another mistake.
Andre Frank Zambo Anguissa’s interception led to Stanislav Lobotka threading the ball to Scott McTominay, and while Andrea Carboni made a desperate block, Kvaratskhelia pounced to slot home from close range.
Despite Napoli’s ascent to the top of the Serie A standings with 13 points, Conte is reluctant to label them title contenders.
“I always say there is an advantage that we can train the whole week, but the disadvantage is that our squad is not as competitive as those who play in Europe,” Conte told DAZN as per TuttoNapoli.
“Having said that, we try to work to fuel dreams, as they can also come true, but I have to look at the reality and that says we are very far from flying high,” he added.
Conte highlighted the challenges his squad faces after undergoing a major reconstruction.
“It hasn’t even been three months since the President talked about a total reconstruction of the squad. We lost 14 players and brought in seven. We lost players like Osimhen and Zielinski,” he said.
While Napoli lead Serie A, Conte warns that more established teams, like Inter and Juventus, have a competitive edge. “The aim is to get Napoli competitive again, not like last season when we were 10th and 40 points off Inter.”
Conte’s message is clear: Napoli may be leading, but the season is long, and the focus is on improving, not chasing immediate glory.