Conte: Napoli success ‘not emphasized enough’, fans will ‘only remember who won’
Antonio Conte feels that many underappreciated Napoli’s 2025-26 Serie A title win, as well as their injury troubles in 2025-26, but feels that his squad are in a good place to take on Bologna in the final of the Supercoppa Italiana on Monday evening.
The reigning Serie A champions beat Milan 2-0 in the Supercoppa Italiana semi-final in Riyadh on Thursday evening, which set up a date with reigning Coppa Italia victors Bologna, who defeated Inter on penalties in the other semi-final on Friday night.
This is the first opportunity of silverware for the Italian sides in 2025-26, and for Conte, it would be two trophies won from a possible three since he took over at Napoli if he claims victory in Saudi Arabia tomorrow night.
Conte previews Napoli vs. Bologna Supercoppa Italiana final
Beating Bologna will be no easy feat for Conte and his players, who have already slipped to a defeat against the Rossoblu in Serie A this season.
“The league game against Bologna obviously wasn’t a positive result for us. We lost 2-0, where they showed a lot more than us in the second half. Injuries have forced us to find new solutions,” Conte told the media during his pre-match press conference on Sunday afternoon.
“Whether it’s victory or defeat, you always have to start over. From defeats, you analyse what went wrong. We did that in a calm and honest way and put together five consecutive decent results. We slipped twice but got off to a good start (in the Supercoppa Italiana) against Milan.”
And how have the Napoli squad responded since their encouraging 2-0 victory over Milan in the semi-final?
“Victories bring you energy and confidence. We’re playing for a trophy and I think that’s a big boost for those who play in this final. In terms of energy, we’ve recovered. As I always say to the boys, you only ever remember who won. And it will always be like that.”
Conte was asked if he fears that Bologna will be ‘hungrier’ for a trophy than Napoli, who have been slightly more accustomed to winning silverware over the last few seasons.
“If this is the case, that would be the end for us. They have to prove that they are better than us. We have to, at least, match their desire to win.”
Conte was asked what it takes to get back to winning ways after two consecutive unfortunate losses against Udinese and Benfica over the last two weeks.
He replied: “We can’t forget where we’ve come from. We won an extraordinary Scudetto after finishing the season before in 10th place. That is something that is not emphasized enough. I’ve already said that it would be a difficult year since we’ve brought in nine new players, but in the end, we are where we should be in the league.
“We’ve come here to play for the Supercoppa, and we are in the final. We’ve got a chance to win a title and progress in other competitions. Many forget that we’ve had serious injuries to important players.”
And when asked for his opinions on Vincenzo Italiano, Conte said: “I can only speak well of Vincenzo. He has a great desire to learn and improve. He’s worked his way up, as I did, and he’s always done well wherever he’s gone. He’s got a lot of passion and always wants to improve.
“Us coaches must try to grow and improve our knowledge every day. He’s hungry, he wants to get there, he has passion and he shows it. He does a great job wherever he goes.”