Parma manager Fabio Pecchia spoke to DAZN following his team’s hard-fought 2-1 loss against Napoli. Despite the defeat, Pecchia was full of praise for his young squad’s performance against the reigning Serie A champions.
“It was a great match, congratulations to my players,” Pecchia began. “From a human, professional, and technical standpoint, we leave the field as winners, but with zero points against a team built to win the Scudetto and who have already won it. My players are very young, Kowalski made his debut today. We played with great personality, my boys were outstanding.”
When asked what he would take away from the match, Pecchia highlighted his team’s proactive approach: “First of all, the desire to always want to dictate the game. We came here to build play in a certain way and we succeeded. We took the lead on merit. In the first half, we created several chances without conceding anything. Even with ten men, we had the last opportunity, and even if we had equalized, we wouldn’t have stolen anything. I saw great intelligence in the boys’ play, we did what we had prepared. We will learn from this match.”
Addressing his apparent frustration on the sidelines, Pecchia clarified: “I don’t talk about referees. I had something to say to Antonio Conte, who probably hadn’t seen some situations clearly. Then I spoke with him, and it ended there. Everyone analyzes their own things, I analyze mine.”
On the team’s confidence after their first three matches, Pecchia stated: “We come out of these three games with four points, and we probably have something to complain about. We try to play every game to win, without speculating. When there’s a need to defend, we defend.”
Finally, reflecting on his return to the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, Pecchia concluded: “It was fantastic. Beyond Ciro Ferrari, who was cheering for Napoli (laughs). Fantastic atmosphere at the Maradona, I believe that this year, and I hope for them, they will fight for the top positions.”
