Napoli press divided on Allegri ahead of Arsenal opener

The story dominating Wednesday's coverage is the Champions League opener against Arsenal, read mostly through who is missing. Sky Sport leads on the absences of Anguissa and Neres, reporting that head coach Allegri is ready to switch formation and start Billy Gilmour from kick-off.

Difficulties have to be managed by talking little and working.

On the European target, he called getting past the play-offs the "minimum target", admitting that with Anguissa out, in midfield "we are four for three places".

Corriere dello Sport strikes the opposite tone, one of rallying round the coach. Salvione writes a piece of trust in Allegri, saying Napoli will improve with time; the paper's headline, "Napoli per Max" ("Napoli for Max"), portrays Allegri firing up his players before Arsenal.

La Gazzetta dello Sport is on the same wavelength, headlined "Provaci Napoli" ("Go for it, Napoli"), and focuses on Højlund and the defence as the keys to withstanding the Gunners.

Not everyone shares that rallying tone. On DAZN, De Giuseppe says openly that two Napoli players "did not repay the trust" Allegri put in them, and admits he did not expect Inter's comeback. As the build-up intensifies, La Repubblica returns to the transfer window, now closed, with a series of critical pieces: Di Lorenzo's contract renewal, the McTominay situation, and the signing of Badiashile.

Our take

The divide is real, not manufactured. On one side are those trying to rally the fanbase around Allegri at the trickiest moment of his tenure so far. On the other are those looking at three points from three games and asking questions about the transfer business. We find the second reading more convincing: Napoli go into their Champions League opener without Anguissa and with a doubt over Neres — a squad already stretched thin in early September — and none of the trust-building pieces really explain how that midfield gap gets filled. What is missing, in general, is someone holding both things together instead of picking a side: trust in the head coach and doubts about the squad are not mutually exclusive.