Napoli Coach Maurizio Sarri assures Dries Mertens “is not in doubt” for the Champions League game with Nice.
The Belgian forward sustained a foot injury in the win over Verona, leading to fears he could miss out on tomorrow’s play-off second leg.
“Having talked to the doctor, I don’t think he’s in doubt,” Sarri assured in his pre-match Press conference.
“He got a knock on one of his feet, his boots were causing him a bit of discomfort so I sent him to the gym.
Napoli Coach Maurizio Sarri assures Dries Mertens “is not in doubt” for the Champions League game with Nice.
The Belgian forward sustained a foot injury in the win over Verona, leading to fears he could miss out on tomorrow’s play-off second leg.
“Having talked to the doctor, I don’t think he’s in doubt,” Sarri assured in his pre-match Press conference.
“He got a knock on one of his feet, his boots were causing him a bit of discomfort so I sent him to the gym.
“The choice was more mine than his, but talking to him and the doctor no-one foresees any big problems.”
The Partenopei won the first leg 2-0, but Mario Balotelli and Wesley Sneijder are expected to return for tomorrow’s game.
“They’re two names who speak for themselves, they have great history behind them and they’re still young enough to influence an important game.
“We’ll need to be even better than in the first leg to contain the massive attacking potential Nice have.
“We need to forget about the first leg, we can’t run the risk of approaching this game in a way which doesn’t suit us.
“We need to go out onto the pitch thinking of a one-off game, otherwise we run the risk of forgetting to play our football. I’d ask to think of a one-off game, to bring the result home.
“They believe, and rightly so, the first leg result leaves all sort of possibilities open. Nice are a strong team, and we have some responsibility too because we only converted two chances.
“But we’re also strong and we believe, we’ve come here to get a result at all costs. It’ll be tough for us, but we know it’ll be tough for them too.
“Nice are strong and they have very good individuals. [Jean] Seri has great qualities and is of the highest levels.
“[Allan] Saint-Maximin is young, talented and a very dangerous lad. Maybe he’s not yet unimpeachable in a tactical sense, but he’s a very dangerous lad.
“Nice are strong though, so obviously they have strong players.
“This game will be different, Nice have changed formation compared to a few days ago. The first leg isn’t indicative, tomorrow there will be a more attacking and determined Nice.
“The financial impact of qualifying? I’m interested in the Champions League, I work on other things and think about the pitch and the prestige.
“This isn’t a normal game, in my opinion, it’s very important. It could affect the whole season mentally, psychologically.
“That’s my view, I hope it doesn’t put pressure on the team but just transmits the right determination for the importance of the game.”
Tomorrow will be Sarri’s 100th game on the Napoli bench, but he won’t be doing anything to celebrate.
“I don’t even celebrate birthdays anymore, it seems to me I’ve had too many of them,” the Coach smiled.
“In the same way I think I’ve had too many games on too many benches, I don’t look at the numbers and I hope the best is right to come.”