‘Inter more important than City’

By Football Italia staff

Aurelio De Laurentiis wants Napoli to rest their stars against Manchester City, “with Inter only around the corner.”

Napoli face City in the Champions League on Wednesday, with a win moving the Partenopei level with the English giants at the top of Group F, but De Laurentiis suggested his club were prioritising Serie A and their subsequent visit of Inter.

“City? I think that some of our players should sit out this game, with Inter only around the corner and being just as important,” the President told Gazzetta dello Sport.

“Guardiola’s praise? It concerned me. I loved it when Di Francesco said Roma would beat us. It fired up my players.

“I wouldn’t like it if Guardiola’s praise resulted in my players losing focus. He’s a wily old fox and he knows the quality of his squad, which is remarkable.

“For us, it could also be a game that’s almost impossible to win, but we’ll wait for them in Naples…

“Inter? We have to face them in a more meditative way. We’ll have the advantage of playing at the San Paulo, in front of our fans. I invite them to fill our stadium.

“It’s a very important moment for our season, and we need their passion. Serie A or CL the priority? We only have to worry about getting out of our group in Europe, not winning all our games.

“The critics after our defeat in Ukraine, for example, bothered me a lot. it seemed like a tragedy had happened, while against Shakhtar Donetsk, we only lost 2-1, which may be important for goal difference, in the event of parity with another team, for second place.

“I say that we need to evaluate everything and adopt the right strategy. I’m lucky to have a Coach who’s a great strategist.”

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