Aurelio De Laurentiis visited the locker room after the stunning defeat against Spezia but not to scold his squad. The Napoli president preached serenity and confidence despite their slide. The chairman is hopeful the Partenopei will turn things around once they get some pieces back.
According to Corriere dello Sport, De Laurentiis told the players: “You have to remain calm and not lose heart. You need to stay strong because you are. Plus, you have a great coach and a club that will protect you. We will achieve excellent results in 2022. Forget this defeat and move on.”
The publication adds that the atmosphere was not angsty despite the slip-up. Spezia had beaten the Azzurri in their own stadium in January last season too. The Napoli president reacted much differently on that occasion and was fuming afterward.
After being title contenders in the early going, the Partenopei crashed down to earth, also due to multiple injuries. They have lost three of the last four matches, although they topped Milan at San Siro. They have prevailed just twice in the last eight rounds, and are now seven points behind the league-leading Inter.
Napoli have mostly played without Kalidou Koulibaly, Victor Osimhen, Fabian Ruiz and Lorenzo Insigne in the recent sticky patch. The first two, and André-Franck Zambo Anguissa, will be unavailable in January due to the African Cup of Nations. They will face Juventus right after the winter break, where they will try to protect their five-point lead over the top contender for the Champions League zone.