NAPLES, Italy : Antonio Conte is not putting any limits on his ambitions for Napoli, after a 1-0 win over Venezia on Sunday pulled them level on points with Serie A leaders Atalanta, with substitute Giacomo Raspadori to thank for the victory.
At the start of the season, Conte had spoken of a rebuilding process after joining a club which had failed to defend their league title when finishing 10th last season.
Now the Scudetto is once again within their sights.
“Even when I play cards with my daughter, I want to win,” Conte told broadcaster DAZN.
“I would never sign on for minimum goals. Personally, I always aim for the maximum, finding ourselves on 41 points was very difficult to predict, in my opinion.
“The squad is improving and works, game after game. We need to avoid injuries, the players and the fans are getting a lot of satisfaction.”
Raspadori has found it difficult to break into Conte’s side, with just two league starts this season, but his first goal of the campaign proved decisive and Conte has plans to get the forward more involved in the future.
“We are inventing Raspadori as a choice,” Conte said.
“I’m working on turning him into an attacking midfielder, to add quality during games, which, like today, can certainly be a strategy that works.
“I’m personally happy for Giacomo, he deserves it given the energy and seriousness which he puts into every training session, he is a guy involved in the project.”
Raspadori’s goal came after Napoli had struggled to break through Venezia, with Romelu Lukaku having a penalty saved. The visitors’ keeper Filip Stankovic also deflected a shot from the Belgian striker onto the upright.
“It’s a shame we got to the final 10 minutes still on 0-0, but it felt like the game was cursed, between missed penalties and posts,” Conte said.
“I am pleased, because the team is improving, but if we can score a few more goals then we would all be more relaxed and avoid a few heart attacks in the closing stages.”
