Conte Hails Napoli's "Crucial" Win Over Cremonese in Champions League Race

Antonio Conte emphasized the importance of Napoli's 4-0 victory over Cremonese on Friday, calling the three points "crucial" in their pursuit of Champions League qualification. The win delayed Inter's Serie A title celebrations and strengthened Napoli's grip on a top-four spot.

Napoli dominated from the outset at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, with Scott McTominay opening the scoring in the third minute. An own goal from Filippo Terracciano and a strike from Kevin De Bruyne extended their lead before halftime. Alisson Santos added a fourth early in the second half, though McTominay missed a late penalty saved by Cremonese goalkeeper Emil Audero.

The result lifted Napoli to second place, 11 points clear of fifth-placed Como. According to Opta's projections, the team now has a 99.1% chance of securing Champions League football for the second consecutive season. This marks the first time since 2020-21 under Gennaro Gattuso that Napoli have recorded at least five wins against newly promoted sides in a single Serie A campaign.

"We're happy, we had fun, and we're second while waiting for others' results," Conte told DAZN via TuttoMercatoWeb. "These are three crucial points for the Champions League."

The victory came after Napoli's 26-game unbeaten home streak in Serie A was snapped by Lazio in their previous match. Under Conte, they avoided consecutive home league losses for the first time since December 2021. The 4-0 margin marked their biggest league win since September 2024 against Cagliari and their largest home victory since January 2023 against Juventus.

Napoli controlled the game statistically, posting an expected goals (xG) of 3.16 from 25 attempts, compared to Cremonese's 0.28 from seven shots. "I had no doubts about the team's response," Conte said. "Today, there was great determination and a desire for revenge. After Lazio, the criticism was excessive for a team that won the league and the Super Cup and is still second—despite missing four players like Di Lorenzo, Neres, Lukaku, and Vergara."

McTominay starred for Napoli, scoring the fastest goal of his Serie A season (2:23) and becoming the league's top-scoring midfielder in 2025 with seven goals. He also leads all central midfielders in home goals over the last two seasons (10 total). The Scot topped Napoli's charts in shots (10), chances created (3), passes (66), and final-third passes (20), while ranking second in duels won (7).

When asked about McTominay's ideal role, Conte stated: "We had to use him centrally because only he and Lobotka were available. That’s his position—he’s a box-to-box midfielder, and we’ve worked on his link-up play."