Sassuolo have started the 2020-21 season impressively, scoring goals for fun and going unbeaten, but missing a heap of key players for Sunday’s trip to Napoli appeared likely to bring their undefeated run to an end.
That wasn’t the case, as Sassuolo recorded a 2-0 win in Naples, thanks to goals from Manuel Locatelli with a 59th minute penalty and Maxime Lopez with a stoppage-time sealer.
The result sees Sassuolo move up to second spot on the Serie A table, behind only AC Milan. They’re the top scorers in Serie A, with 18 strikes from six games too.
And they managed Sunday’s win without top scorer Francesco Caputo who was on the sidelines along with key players Domenico Berardi, Filip Djuricic, Lukas Haraslin, Jeremy Toljan and Filippo Romagna.
Sassuolo finished eighth in Serie A last term, while their best-ever finish was sixth in 2015-16, but this season’s rapid rise is something no one expected, including their players according to manager Roberto De Zerbi.
“I was giving the team talk today and said I saw a strong starting XI that could win in Naples,” De Zerbi said about his under-strength side.
“They looked at me and didn’t seem to believe I meant it. I had to stop and explain to them that I wasn’t trying to blow smoke, I was telling them the truth and I genuinely believed it.
“I think they believed it eventually, because quality is important, but you wont get anywhere without belief in your capabilities.”
He added: “I’ve told the players many times, if were going to lose, let us choose how to lose. We can be defensive and showcase their quality, or we can try to showcase our qualities.”
Napoli manager Gennaro Gattuso paid respect to Sassuolo, despite a frustrating loss where they had a late penalty shout at 1-0 declined.
These incidents can happen, its not my job to judge the referee,” Gattuso said.
“I judge the team and I say we could’ve done better. Sassuolo are a side that make you run hard and we were too frenetic. We were naive on their penalty, we should focus first on being solid and getting the goal later.
“If you don’t press Sassuolo well, then Boga and Traore can cause real problems. Our tempo was too slow when Sassuolo had the ball.”
Whether or not Sassuolo can maintain their impressive start remains to be seen, but they’re already winning plenty of admirers which is worth recognition.