Napoli not giving up on third

Napoli’s Morgan De Sanctis believes his club can still secure a top-three finish as they prepare for their last game of the season against Siena.

Napoli (58 points) are in fifth place in Serie A, three points behind Udinese in third – where they need to be to take a place in the Champions League qualifiers – and with a superior goal difference to both Udinese and fourth-placed Lazio (59 points).

De Sanctis believes his side will bounce back from last weekend’s shock 2-0 loss at Bologna and will take care of business against Siena on Sunday.

“It was a bitter blow losing 2-0 away to Bologna,” De Sanctis told Il Corriere dello Sport.

“Nevertheless, I choose to stay positive because the last few days have shown that motivated teams can distort the rankings from what they may be today.”

De Sanctis is optimistic Napoli will pounce on any slip-ups committed by their third-place rivals in the last round of fixtures.

“We’ll think only of winning our match against Siena, and hopefully await favourable results from Catania-Udinese and Lazio-Inter,” he continued.

“The setback (against Bologna) was indeed ugly, but the season has not yet been completely written.

“The Napoli project is a serious one which has had the chance to grow internationally. What will happen now may be impossible to predict, but the club will always continue growing stronger and more organised.”