Napoli captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo sees a similarity between the Partenopei and Italy at Euro 2020 but insists they are not favourite against Eintracht Frankfurt on Tuesday.
The Partenopei visit Eintracht in the first leg of the Champions League Round of 16 on Tuesday night.
“Games in Europe are very intense, the level is very high. There isn’t a favourite team, we will face a strong side who keep a high intensity, it all depends on what we’ll do on the pitch,” Di Lorenzo said at a press conference on Monday.
The 29-year-old was part of the Italy team that won the Euros in 2021. Has he noticed any similarity between the Azzurri and this Napoli side?
“We have prepared in the best way for this game, there are analogies, I see the same unity here,” he said.
“The full-back position has evolved in the last few years and I try to change my position depending on the opponents’ system. We try to occupy the space well,” continued Di Lorenzo.
“We are doing well in Serie A, but this is another competition. We have never reached the quarter-finals and we are aware of the importance of this game. We want to show our worth also in Europe.”
Eintracht boss Oliver Glasner said the Partenopei don’t look like a Serie A club for how they play, but Di Lorenzo doesn’t feel the Partenopei are different from other clubs playing in Italy’s top flight.
“No, we try to put our potential on the pitch, we have quality players and it’s natural to play a certain style of football,” he concluded.