Sarri calls on Napoli to keep fighting

Maurizio Sarri praised his Napoli team despite slipping out of top spot in Serie A.

Napoli coach Maurizio Sarri urged his team to continue pushing in Serie A after giving up top spot following a 0-0 draw against Inter on Sunday.

Sarri's side slipped to second in the table after Juventus – who also have a game in hand – recorded a 2-0 win over Udinese.

While his team have dropped points in back-to-back league games, Sarri called on Napoli to keep fighting.

"Juventus are a top European side and Italy has the only league where the title race is still open, compared to Spain, Germany, England and France. That Serie A is not wrapped up yet is down to Napoli," he said.

"Tonight's performance tells us that mentally the team is right in there. Our concentration hasn't dropped, nor has our belief in our ability.

"Our job is to constantly challenge ourselves and try to improve as much as possible. The objective is to give 100 per cent until the end of the season."

With his team second in the table, Sarri said his players were achieving "extraordinary" things this season.

"I'm satisfied with the performance. We showed character against an excellent Inter side. The team has given an excellent response to the defeat and the disappointment from last Saturday," he said.

"Early on we were more concerned with setting up properly and taking care of the defensive part of our game, maybe because of what happened against Roma. Then we pressed on the accelerator and created some great chances.

"We weren't clinical enough and missed a couple of presentable chances, but the opportunities were there.

"We've lost just twice this season, so we must understand we're achieving extraordinary things. If our rivals get more than 100 points, then that's to their credit."