Antonio Conte, getty images January 31, 2026, 10:28 p.m

The injury to captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo was a major blow for Napoli after their 2-1 win over Fiorentina in Serie A. The player was carried off on a stretcher after what appeared to be a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. If this is confirmed, then most likely, this is the end of performances for this season.

The head coach of the team, Antonio Conte, confirmed the disappointing forecasts of doctors:

“The feeling is that he has seriously damaged his knee and it is the cruciate ligament. It is unpleasant. You know very well what Di Lorenzo means to us.”

Conte expressed his anger at the player overload and limited squad:

“Playing all these matches kills the players and kills football. We need a bigger squad or it’s suicide.”

The Italian coach did not limit himself to criticizing only the calendar and the overload of matches. He openly accused the directors of Napoli, UEFA and other football bodies of neglecting the safety of the players:

“Clubs don’t seem to understand that it’s like a dog chasing its own tail. You’re fighting for a place in all these tournaments to get more money, but it’s ephemeral. The more competitions, the more players you have to buy and the wage bill goes up.”

Conte emphasized that his team is already without a number of key players due to injuries or transfer restrictions:

“We are the only club that has a profit of 240 million euros and we are not allowed to make transfers. It’s just fantastic,” added the coach sarcastically.

This injury to one of the team’s leaders is another blow for the team after defeats to Juventus in Serie A and Chelsea in the Champions League, which led to an early exit from the tournament.