Luciano Spalletti wants more determination from Napoli after their 4-1 win over Salernitana, but admits if Dries Mertens wants to stay, he must ‘accept the terms offered by the club.’
The Partenopei took a while to really get going, as Federico Bonazzoli had cancelled out the Juan Jesus opener, but two very soft penalties converted by Mertens and Lorenzo Insigne along with an Amir Rrahmani tap-in sealed the 4-1 result.
“It’s always complicated when you take the lead, seem to be in control and concede an equaliser at the first opportunity,” Spalletti told DAZN.
Serie A | Napoli 4-1 Salernitana: Mertens and Insigne reunite
“The tempo dropped and we’ve lost a few games at home like this, but the team reacted well and scoring just before half-time was crucial. We showed after the break how much we wanted to bring home these three points.”
Victor Osimhen had been expected to get his first start in two months after multiple facial fractures, but the substitute seemed irritable at the final whistle during a discussion with Spalletti.
“He was just annoyed because he wasn’t able to score a goal. These things happen at the end of a game,” assured the coach.
“Napoli need to improve our determination and character, because you must never rest on your laurels or feel the game is won, even with a two-goal advantage.”
Salernitana were not happy with the two penalties and director Walter Sabatini, who worked with Spalletti at both Roma and Inter, interrupted the interview to jokingly suggest Napoli got a penalty for every three corners as some sort of obscure rule.
The pair laughed and parted company with a kiss on the cheek.
Insigne scored his first goal since signing for Toronto FC and pointed to the Napoli badge with a message of love.
Mertens is in a similar situation, as it’s not clear whether Napoli will take up their option to extend his contract.
“We have a President who has always shown his desire to create a strong team. He has to review the contracts. If a player wants to remain, he will have to accept the terms offered by the club.”
— Alfredo Pedullà (@AlfredoPedulla) January 23, 2022
So the Mertens contract and the “Journalist’s” opinion of the validity of the penalties is the news here, not the 4-1 result? If this was one of the protected species from the north it wouldn’t even be mentioned.