Gennaro Gattuso pinpointed Napoli's lack of intensity in the final third as the main problem after the Azzurri slipped to a 1-0 defeat to AZ Alkmaar despite dominating proceedings.
“We were too soft in attack – we barely tickled AZ,” the coach following his side's Europa League Group F Matchday 1 opener.
"I was happy with our overall performance and technically I can have few complaints but we must be more aggressive and determined when we have the ball.
"We were always in control of the game but our possession was so sterile you got the impression we could have played for a day without scoring. We need to show more hunger because having the upper hand means nothing without determination.
"AZ have never played like that before. They got every man behind the ball. Clearly the selection problems they had helped them intensify their efforts and energy. They ran hard and played well.
“We came up short in the final 15 minutes and despite giving away little or nothing we conceded on a counter-attack. Apart from that, we played the game we wanted to play but we needed to do it with more intensity. We'll learn from this.”
(Photo Getty Images)
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Source: legaseriea.it