Hojlund shines on Napoli debut but Conte urges higher standards

Antonio Conte was left frustrated following Napoli’s 3-1 victory over Fiorentina, insisting it was “not possible” for his side to come under late pressure after such dominance, though he praised debutant Rasmus Hojlund.

Napoli maintained their ideal start to the Serie A campaign with three wins out of three.

Kevin De Bruyne opened the scoring from the penalty spot, followed by on-loan Hojlund marking his first game for the club with a composed finish. Defender Sam Beukema, another player making his league debut, also registered his first goal for Napoli after the interval.

Luca Ranieri pulled one back for Fiorentina late on, sparking a flurry of chances for the hosts, and Conte was annoyed at how Napoli allowed the Viola back into the contest.

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“We showed that we are ready. There was a good attitude from the start, it was a match that we dominated, as [David] de Gea made several saves, so it’s not possible that we should struggle at the end,” Conte said.

“The lads know, just as I tell my kids, where they need to improve, what I liked and didn’t like. We conceded a goal and then started to struggle. When you play this well, you need to kill off the game and keep it closed.”

Much of the attention was on new signing Hojlund, who was not expected to be deployed as a starter so soon after his deadline-day loan move from Manchester United, which includes a €44 million option to buy.

“Hojlund is only 22 years old, we got him from Manchester United, seeing as it brought us luck doing that with [Scott] McTominay,” Conte quipped.

“We knew his qualities, he has great potential and can improve. You can see he’s a lad with great prospects.”

Midfielder Frank Anguissa, meanwhile, continued his strong form after being named Serie A’s Player of the Month for August.

He provided the assist for Beukema’s strike, and is now one of only three midfielders this season — along with Nico Paz and Mario Pasalic — to both score and provide at least one assist in Serie A so far.