TMW Radio
During today’s appointment with L’Editoriale on TMW Radio frequencies Paolo De Paola spoke. These are his words:
Third consecutive victory for Napoli and top spot in the standings. Will the match against Juve be the first test for Conte’s team?
“The only risk for Conte’s team is the instability of the Neapolitan environment. Now everyone is euphoric and has already forgotten about Verona, they are aiming hard for the Scudetto. The problem is that this ambition either enters everyone’s head or the instability will emerge after every misstep. We must clearly say that this Napoli branded Antonio Conte, given the sumptuous transfer market made, must aim for the Scudetto. It cannot hide behind this ambition, this must be the objective and if it does not achieve it it would be a failure. Napoli must get rid of this alibi, you cannot hide after having taken Conte and after this pharaonic transfer campaign. It is true that Napoli was a bad one with Parma and at times with Cagliari, but Napoli seemed like Joe Frazier. They always went on the attack and this is Napoli, this continuous wave of attacks and in the end they break through. It is a rising tide and McTominay, Neres and Gilmour still have to be included. There is still a lot to see in this Napoli and evidently it cannot hide”.
Disappointing 0-0 for Juve in Empoli. What is this Juventus missing in attack?
“We absolutely need to cool down the pro-Allegri front and many journalists are part of this front. I didn’t mind Juventus against Empoli, in the first year of Allegri’s return to Juve after four games they had conceded six goals, Juve now have eight points conceding zero goals. There is a huge difference, but if we want to go beyond the numbers even a 0-0 can have different interpretations. Juventus has always gone for vertical lines, then they lacked an outlet. Koopmeiners and Gonzalez have always looked for the vertical, if they failed to score it is due to Empoli who won with Roma and have a certain solidity, play good football and create density. They are one of the 3-4 teams in this championship that create density like Verona and Genoa, they try to oppress the opponent in every area of the pitch and are bringing results. However, I also see the 0-0 as a stimulus to try to score a goal at Juventus, it’s a possession that is never an end in itself and that always seeks the attack”.
Is there a Vlahovic problem?
“I don’t see it as a problem yet, it’s not yet worrying. He’s scored two goals in four games, he needs a partner that isn’t there yet and that will perhaps arrive in January. I see in the dialogue with Koopmeiners and Gonzalez an ability to duet with his teammates, I don’t see it as a problem. The team’s unity will lead him to score and be well. At the moment he’s a bit held back, but supplies are coming to him now and if he makes a mistake, as he did sensationally in Empoli, it won’t be a problem.”
Where do Milan’s merits end and Venezia’s demerits begin?
“Milan must finish this mini-cycle with Liverpool and the derby to understand its final ambitions. Even the victory against Venezia that averted the crisis has only fueled the narcissism of this team, a narcissism that is not good for Milan. Looking at yourself for an hour after having closed the match does not help to find that continuity and that nastiness that Milan does not have, especially in its best players. The club is very close to the coach and is doing very well, now you expect Milan to be Milan against Liverpool first and then against Inter”.
What does Inter’s draw leave?
“I have seen a normal Inter in this phase of the championship, you can’t question yourself every time about a crisis. Now we talk about Lautaro Martinez and the crisis in the offensive phase. There are games where it is difficult to express yourself at your best, even if you have good physical and technical quality but there are opponents who complicate the game. Now there will be direct clashes and more decisive games that will increase the teams’ self-esteem, but these are the teams fighting for the Scudetto. Milan is missing and there is a Roman crisis, waiting for Lazio, as far as Roma is concerned”.
What Rome is coming out?
“The same goes for Roma as for Napoli, they are two very difficult environments externally and internally. They are environments where you go from the stars to the stables, you can’t find a middle way where there is safety. The uncertain start raises a thousand questions, what is wrong with this Roma and the coach is being questioned. We need to understand how much the coach can handle criticism and not go haywire like his predecessors did. Even transparency and linearity are not enough in an environment like Rome or Naples, you have to be soft and the great Liedholm didn’t teach certain things for nothing. The joke to defuse moments of tension is needed, will De Rossi and Conte have the ability to resist this practice? The problem is not the defeat or the lackluster performance, but the nervous management of moments”.