Arrigo Sacchi believes that having Victor Osimhen would not have made a difference for Napoli last night after they lost 4-0 to AC Milan.
The first half showing was what set the tone as Rafael Leao opened the scoring with a delightful chip after some excellent work from Brahim Diaz, and the Spaniard turned provider to scorer to make it 2-0.
Leao got his second of the night after a lovely dribble and powerful shot that beat Meret, and then Alexis Saelemaekers got a goal off the bench after a Messi-esque dribble. The result is huge in the scheme of Milan’s season, with the top four battle increasing in intensity as the weeks go by.
Sacchi spoke during his weekly column for La Gazzetta dello Sport and he took apart Napoli’s performance against the Rossoneri, who dominated them from start to finish.
“Sensational in Naples. Milan clears the “Maradona” with a dry and well-deserved 4-0. But what happened? The answer is quite simple: Napoli lost because they lost those principles and values which, until now, had amazed everyone, while Milan have shown that the team, when it works, is always a winner. One times one always equals one and one times eleven always equals eleven,” he said.
“Here is the difference between the two teams. Napoli, which commands the table, have so far played football with great movement, great intensity and great speed. Against the Rossoneri these qualities were not seen. Spalletti’s boys started off at a slow pace, decidedly too slow. And so, by not intimidating their opponents with pressing, they gave them courage.
“There is a precise photograph that explains the whole game: for Milan Leao also returned to the defensive phase, who has hardly ever done so in two years. This means that the team were very motivated, that the players constantly helped each other, that they exchanged roles and positions and were always linked by an invisible thread which was the game.
“The Rossoneri’s success can easily be explained as the exaltation of the team. Always compact, Pioli’s group. Always ready to double mark. Always available to participate in both the possession phase and the non-possession phase: this means being in an active position at all times of the match.
“And, if you are so willing, you can afford the pressing which is essential to increase your self-esteem and to force the opponent to play the way you want.
“Now everyone will say: yes, but Osimhen was missing. So, let’s immediately clear the field of misunderstanding: in this context, that is, with a Napoli that is not very gritty, very slow and very predictable, even Osimhen would have struggled. And this explains that one player cannot solve the situation.
“There are three fundamental components that have allowed Spalletti’s boys to reach the top of the standings and amaze the Italian public: strong motivation, team spirit and organisation.
“The reasons came in part from the fact that important pieces of the group from the past were sold in the summer, for example Insigne, Mertens and Koulibaly, and everyone thought that the team had weakened.
“Wanting to prove the bias was wrong was a major drive, just as an important contribution was made by the strong team spirit that Spalletti, a true strategist, was able to build. And then, as a logical consequence, the organisation of the game arrived, which allows you to win even when worthy men are missing, but which cannot exist without the two previous qualities.
“Against Milan, without the right motivations and therefore without the necessary team spirit, could there be the same organisation? I would say no. And Osimhen’s absence has nothing to do with it.
“For Milan, in addition to Leao who demonstrated a truly commendable ability to sacrifice himself and whom we had rarely admired, I really liked Brahim Diaz. He fought, created, scored, gave assists and was able to struggle even in the defensive phase.
“He was a bogeyman for the entire Napoli defence, a defense which, to be honest, seemed too soft and vulnerable to me. Why all this happened I don’t know exactly. Perhaps an excess of enthusiasm, perhaps the thought of being unbeatable. Maybe.
“Moments of crisis or simply bad matches happen to anyone: Milan also went through a bad time, now Liverpool are experiencing it. Now Spalletti and the managers will have to be very good because a lot of psychological work will be needed.
“The speech to be made to the team is very clear: ‘If we are a collective, we can beat anyone. If we are not a collective, we have little chance against anyone’. Even in the Champions League, with the double challenge between Napoli and Milan, this result can have an impact: for Spalletti’s boys it is a hard blow to digest quickly.”
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