A goal by Stanislav Lobotka was enough for Napoli to earn three points at home to Sassuolo on Saturday.
The midfielder fired home on the volley from the edge of the box just six minutes into what turned out to be a tricky match, with the Azzurri digging in at the end to claim the points.
Speaking after the game, Cristian Stellini said the mood in the camp remains positive despite the crippling injury list.
“Morale is good because the team have responded well to this difficult spell. We're missing lots of players but we have to hang in there and try to get through this hectic run of fixtures.
“Mentally the players are in a good place: they're fighting and battling till the end with real intensity. The problem is that we don't have many players available but we just have to make the best of it.”
Stan Lobotka expressed his joy after scoring the match-winning goal:
“I'm delighted with my goal. I hadn't scored for quite a while, but what really matters is it won us the game.
“We needed to shake ourselves up a bit and give our fans something to cheer about. We're pleased with the result and now we'll try to climb back up the table.
“We have lots of games in Serie A and the Champions League and we're having to do it without a full squad because of the various injuries. We'll try to recover and keep competing for our targets.”
Antonio Vergara was a happy man after making his full debut:
“I'm thrilled, both with my performance and the fact that we won. When the boss told me I was playing I felt a sense of incredible joy. I hope I was able to do myself justice out there. It was a surprise for me and a pleasure to have played in a match that we wanted to win at all costs.”
Napoli 1-0 Sassuolo (HT 1-0)
Scorer: Lobotka 7.
NAPOLI: Milinkovic-Savic; Beukema (Noa Lang 56), Rrahmani (Buongiorno 67), Juan Jesus; Di Lorenzo, Lobotka, McTominay, Spinazzola; Vergara (Mazzocchi 62), Elmas (Politano 56), Hojlund.
Coach: Stellini (Conte suspended).
SASSUOLO: Muric; Walukiewicz, Idzes, Muharemovic, Doig (Coulibaly 81) Vranckx (Iannoni 54), Matic, Lipani (Moro 89) Fadera (Skyellerup 81), Pinamonti (Cheddira 89), Lauriente.
Coach: Grosso.
Referee: Fourneau.
Booked: Vranckx, Iannoni.
