Napoli have been called upon to channel their Champions League anguish into motivation for the Europa League by Carlo Ancelotti, who believes they have the talent to win it.
A 1-0 defeat in their final game against Liverpool at Anfield saw the Partenopei drop into the second tier tournament on goals scored, a cruel way to exit.
However, the man in charge was adamant that Napoli would not feel sorry for themselves and although there is disappointment, they will be taking the Europa League seriously.
“We have to accept this, even if we are disappointed. We did everything we could in all six games, maybe even a little more, so there is no regret but we can use this bitterness in the Europa League, where we can do well,” he told Sky Sport Italia.
“It isn’t as prestigious as the Champions League but it is an important tournament for us. Of course we are all disappointed not to be in the Champions League anymore.
“However, that disappointment will make us even more determined in the Europa League. We want to be fighting for that title until the end.”
Although small moments throughout the campaign, such as Red Star’s late goal in Naples and Arkadiusz Milik’s last gasp miss at Anfield, proved costly, Ancelotti was keen to avoid pointing the finger.
“We had our chances and Milik had an extraordinary one at the end but I’m not going to criticise anyone. There were chances in all six games from a difficult group,” he added.
“What I’ll say is that we shouldn’t have any regrets. We did our best and were just missing a little bit of good luck here and there.”
Source: forzaitalianfootball.com