Calzona introduces Maradona

This concludes the first day in charge of Napoli for the new Italian coach. Tomorrow is the match against Barcelona at Maradona Stadium.

We return to talking about the former Slovakia captain: “I wanted that Hamsik With me I love Naplesin Slovakia He runs an important academy and has been unable to organize himself. But never say never, along with Maradona he is among the most loved people here in the city. “He's a great person, we work together in the national team and he's really good.”

There are not many paths ahead for the new Italian: “My team must have a clear mentality and be organised. We must also achieve results. We will have pressure on us, but we don't have to think about it. We must have fun. If we do that, we will do well.”

“I like the 4-3-3 plan but I don't stick to formations. Calzona explained: “The team has specific characteristics. It was fortunate to work with Sarri and Spalletti, who are different on the field but with great personalities. I did not hear from them. Everything happened very quickly: I only heard from my family during these hours.”

After Genoa, the Corvette protested against Maradona: “It's true, fans are free to do that when things don't go well. We can't tell them anything, they are always close to us. But we all deserve a good night and hopefully tomorrow we can turn the season around.”

“I don't sign lots. We are Napoli, we are strong and we play at home. I don't accept to think about a draw before the match. If Barcelona is good we will think about it, but let's play to win.” Words of the new Napoli coach “If the players do what I ask, I will be happy. Because I will understand that they believe my ideas. It will be a great achievement. I asked the group to be a team, and that alone would be enough for me. “I don't accept players who don't defend.”

The first meeting with the owner: “I have not had any contact with the club in recent months. “De Laurentiis is not happy with the situation. He asked me to believe in our goals: to go further in the Champions League and strive to qualify for the next tournament.”

“I'm happy to be here, the adrenaline was really pumping on the ring road. We will face a strong team but that doesn't scare me, we are strong too. We need to rediscover some concepts,” continued Calzona, who already sees the flaws: “You need to be convinced. I believe in our qualities, and we have shown them. They did a really good job in the Champions League.”

The captain arrives: “If you change the coach three times, it means something is wrong. The team understands this, and we know we have to do more. “We will work immediately with Calzona. We are not happy and we are all responsible.”

“Barcelona is facing some difficulties, but it is among the strongest in Europe. They have great players and a great coach, but we will not be afraid: we are Napoli.”

“Tomorrow the stadium will be full, and the crowd in Naples is special. “But I'm not asking him for anything,” Calzona continued at the conference. “We'll have to be good at making them happy.” We didn't train much today, we had a lot to do, but things went at a fast pace. Tomorrow morning we will train again and evaluate.”

“Starting again from today, let's reset everything. The team made itself immediately available: few words and many facts. “We immediately went on the pitch” were Ciccio Calzona's first words as Napoli coach.

Francesco Calzona's press conference begins.

There and back, but there is no need to think about it immediately: «We enter the field to win, we BarcelonaA draw would not be a good result. But let's see how it goes and at the end of the race we will understand.” Xavi.

“Are they criticizing us? Yes, but we should not think about criticism. The Catalan explained: “We have to think about the fans, we are in the Champions League, we just have to focus on this. If we reach the quarter-finals, you will tell us that we will have to work harder. But for now let's look to tomorrow: Barcelona must compete in the Champions League. I don't think about the fact that I will leave, Barcelona is the club of my life. “I have to convey my motivation to the team.”

Under the Azzurri's magnifying glass will be Robert Lewandowski, the Polish striker who is also the leader of the Catalan group: “Lewandowski, like everyone else, is important to us. leader. The round of 16 is the ideal scenario for talent. “I think we can have a great match.”

There is no favourite: they won the Italian League and we won the Spanish League, but we both have problems. You decide who is your favorite. We will have to prove it on the pitch here and then at home,” Xavi explained.

The coach poses the challenge: “We will return to the round of 16 and we want the quarter-finals.” Tomorrow we will have to show the qualities and work done. The conditions are there for a great match.

The change in coach surprised us, but they have their reasons: Calzona knows the team and the city well. We don't know what we'll face, but we'll have to do what we know best. “We are playing against the Italian champion: Osimhen and Kvaratskhelia at the highest level.”

The Blaugrano continues: “Napoli has a strong team and first-class players who won the championship. There is quality despite the difficulties this year. But they are in the round of 16 of the Champions League, and it will be difficult for us.

New coach? We have prepared it regardless of the coach the opponent will have. We prepared well.

Kvaratskhelia is a very strong player, and he has all the qualities that make a difference. “We have to be careful,” De Jong explained.

“You talk a lot about my contract, my future and my salary. The truth is that stories are made up, I'm very happy here in Barcelona, ​​it's my dream club, and I hope I can stay here for a long time.

We are excited, we are in the round of 16 of the Champions League and this has not happened to us for two years. We really want to play”, words of the midfielder.

The Catalan midfielder talks about his future: “I'm tired of talking about my future. I've read a lot of things that are not true, and I don't understand why they are written.”

Waiting in the stadium for the arrival of Xavi and Barcelona, ​​but also for Francisco Calzona's first press conference before the Champions League match. The Spanish coach will speak at 6.15pm.

Francesco Calzona's first training session begins at Castel Volturno. The complete collection of the new Italian coach.

The Blaugrana club has arrived in the city. The appointment is for the afternoon training session Maradona.

There is a wait at the Azzurri's technical center for his first training session Francesco Calzona. the coach Naples The group's players meet to put the final touches before facing Barcelona. Entry to the stadium is at 2:00 pm

No surprises to Xaviflying towards Naples:

The blue shepherd also left his seat at the Britannic Hotel in the city centre. He will head to Castel Volturno with the new coach.

After two hours face to face with President De Laurentiis, Francesco Calzona left the Britannic Hotel and set off for Castel Volturno, where he would meet the team and at two in the afternoon he would lead his first training session as the new coach of Napoli.

As scheduled, at 9.30 this morning, Francesco Calzona walked through the doors of the Hotel Britannic, De Laurentiis' headquarters in Naples. His third adventure in blue officially begins today, his first as a head coach.

With the change of coach, Napoli's match schedule also changed. The training session initially scheduled for 11am was postponed to 2pm, and the press conference initially scheduled for 5pm was postponed to 7.30pm.

The first leg of the Champions League round of 16 between Napoli and Barcelona will be broadcast live and exclusively on Amazon Prime Video. To watch them, you'll need a Prime Video subscription, a smart TV, a game console (Xbox, PlayStation), or devices like Amazon Fire TV Stick, TIMVision Box, and Google Chromecast.