Rafa Benitez notes if Napoli beat Juventus tomorrow after the Super Cup, “there will be a lot of talk around us.”
It kicks off on Sunday at 19.45 GMT, click here for a match preview.
“It is an important game and if we win then there will be a lot of talk around us,” said the Coach in his Press conference.
“The message must always be the same, though: take it one game at a time, then we’ll see if we get consistent results.
Rafa Benitez notes if Napoli beat Juventus tomorrow after the Super Cup, “there will be a lot of talk around us.”
It kicks off on Sunday at 19.45 GMT, click here for a match preview.
“It is an important game and if we win then there will be a lot of talk around us,” said the Coach in his Press conference.
“The message must always be the same, though: take it one game at a time, then we’ll see if we get consistent results.
“We want to win this match against a top level opponent. In order to do that, we must understand what happened in previous games, where we drew and lost too many.
“We must learn to control the game when we are in front, but we did show more character recently against Parma, Juve and Cesena. We can do better, but it’s already two or three steps forward from before. The performance against Cesena was a show of maturity.”
Napoli fought back twice to grab a 2-2 draw against Juventus in the Italian Super Cup in December, eventually winning via a penalty shoot-out.
Just three weeks on from that clash in Doha, the two giants face off again at the Stadio San Paolo.
“I expect to see the San Paolo packed with our fans by our side. They have realised how important it is to be there, as we saw when we held an open training session. They were waiting for a sign from the team and it arrived.
“At the same time, I need to maintain balance. We need the fans to think positive and dream, but we also need to continue doing our work.
“In general we cannot think that we can win the Scudetto with one victory or are disastrous if we lose one game. Our aim is to try and win every match, but we need to keep our balance.”
Gonzalo Higuain bagged a brace in Doha and Marek Hamsik had perhaps his best performance in two years.
“Higuain has to make the difference on the field, just like Hamsik. We have players who all the others trust and that is important,” continued Benitez.
“Hamsik is a fundamental player who was not at his level before, but always worked hard and is now playing better. He always gave 100 per cent and can do even better.”
Will Miguel Angel Britos be picked at left-back against Stephan Lichtsteiner?
“I know full well that Lichtsteiner is a very dangerous player. Britos is strong in the air and quick, but he’s not a real full-back, so he needs help from his teammates. Strinic is not 100 per cent fit.”
Napoli signed Manolo Gabbiadini and Ivan Strinic over the January transfer window, but remain active with more players likely to come in.
“I spoke to Manolo to understand where he can help the team and prefers to play. He likes to be a centre-forward or on the right, but can play any role in attack.
“It’s difficult to work on the market the way we did last January and this month, respecting the financial parameters of the club. There is so much talk about transfers because clubs want to raise the price-tags of their players.”