Napoli Coach Walter Mazzarri feels his side could have put Steaua Bucharest to the sword much earlier at the San Paolo last night.
The Partenopei needed a victory to qualify for the next round of the Europa League, but could only find a winning goal in the 92nd minute through Edinson Cavani.
"It was a strange game," Mazzarri admitted. "They defended from the first minute and didn't give us any space.
"I believe that Napoli always tried to play good football. We deserved to win before the 92nd minute.
Napoli Coach Walter Mazzarri feels his side could have put Steaua Bucharest to the sword much earlier at the San Paolo last night.
The Partenopei needed a victory to qualify for the next round of the Europa League, but could only find a winning goal in the 92nd minute through Edinson Cavani.
"It was a strange game," Mazzarri admitted. "They defended from the first minute and didn't give us any space.
"I believe that Napoli always tried to play good football. We deserved to win before the 92nd minute.
"At times we wasted a lot, but we managed to win in the last second with a great deal of heart .
"Given how they were lined up on the pitch, we only needed to tire them out and hope that with the passing of time some more space would be created.
"It was difficult to play a different style of football. Additionally the desire to win quickly meant there was the risk of leaving ourselves open on the counter.
"It was a high risk game. We did very well. I believe that we deservedly won. This is an important competition. It's a great chance for the team to make progress while progressing in the competition.
"There were 50,000 people in the stadium and I believe that there will be an important financial return for the club if we face this competition in a certain way."
Asked if it's worth slipping up a bit in Serie A to go far in the Europa League, Mazzarri said: "Certainly."