Gennaro Gattuso was happy with Napoli’s 2-0 win over Sassuolo, regardless of the four disallowed goals. ‘Offside is part of the sport, you know…’
The 2-0 result keeps them in the hunt for fifth place, but the evening saw VAR rescue the Partenopei four times by disallowing Sassuolo goals.
Gennaro Gattuso was happy with Napoli’s 2-0 win over Sassuolo, regardless of the four disallowed goals. ‘Offside is part of the sport, you know…’
The 2-0 result keeps them in the hunt for fifth place, but the evening saw VAR rescue the Partenopei four times by disallowing Sassuolo goals.
“We created nine chances, should’ve finished the first half with a three or four goal advantage. Considering how much we create, we don’t score enough and concede too many, so inevitably we run risks,” Gattuso told DAZN.
“Games can change, as we were awful in the first half against Parma, but then did better after the break. We must learn how to put the ball in the net.
“I didn’t see a 50-50 game. Offside is part of the sport, you know… You cannot compare what we created to what Sassuolo did. Maybe you saw a different game to me. I am defensive because I saw a good performance and want to stand up for my players.
“Let’s not forget Sassuolo held Inter at San Siro, beat Lazio at the Olimpico and held Juventus 3-3. They have a strong identity, are a great team and it was by no means easy.”
Napoli are gearing up for the Champions League Round of 16 with Barcelona, having drawn the first leg 1-1 in February.
“We can make history in a couple of weeks, as Napoli have never reached the Champions League quarter-finals. It’s not easy for us to focus here in July, because there are beaches, boats, it’s too hot to stay indoors… We did switch off at times in recent weeks, that’s obvious, but I liked us tonight.
“We can’t make the slightest error against Barcelona. They get half a chance and put it in the top corner. We’ve got to play 95 minutes with our heads in the game. People think passing is easy, it’s really not. We have to become a team that thinks, that covers spaces the right way and remains totally focused.
“Instead, at the first error, we don’t move as much, we make the wrong choices, that’s unacceptable. Fabian Ruiz made a lot of mistakes today, but that can happen, he’s tired. I rested Mario Rui today, some others clearly also need to rest, because they are playing below their capabilities.
“When we decided to sign Diego Demme and Stanislav Lobotka, it’s because we knew they could give us different characteristics and alternatives. That was the intention, they are very different players.”