Napoli manager Walter Mazzarri discussed the problem of depth in his squad after a 3-0 defeat by PSV Eindhoven in the Europa League on Thursday night.
The manager of the Partenopei warned about the consequences of having a lack of depth at certain positions.
After last season Napoli thought they had turned a corner and dealt with the issue, but a poor showing in the Europa League by a squad composed of almost all second team players has made it clear that they are still struggling for strength in depth.
“In the first half we made life difficult for ourselves,” he told Italia 1.
“They were much better. It was an unfavorable game, and one to forget. It will serve as a lesson for the future.”
“We understand the reality that we need to strengthen our depth. We need to concentrate on the young players, they must grow.”
“If we had used all the starters today, we would have suffered in the last game against Udinese.”
“We will either drop points in the Serie A, or in the Europa League.”
Speaking to Sky Sport, Mazzarri talked about the strength of PSV.
“First of all, they were very strong,” he said. “When you evaluate a game, you must always consider the strength of the opponents.”
“We didn’t play too bad, but we were playing against an experienced squad, and starting like that by conceding a foolish goal takes the wind out of your sails.”
“I accept the defeat, our first of the season, and I told the players that it can be a positive if we use it to help ourselves grow and be better in the future.”
Mazzarri also spoke about the importance of selecting a squad for the different competitions, and allowing the young players to grow within the team.
“Experience will help us. Last year we made some selections and ended up dropping about 10-12 points in the Serie A. This year we have a different set of decisions, and we are trying to be competitive in both competitions.”
“At the moment, I think it was right to do it this way, because I was able to observe players that don’t play as often as the starters.”
“It is always said in Italy that you must play the young players, otherwise they won’t grow. The process of growing also involves handling defeat, and then you work on the future.”
