Parma coach Carlos Cuesta expressed his admiration for his team’s “incredible sacrifice and team spirit” after securing a 1-1 draw against Napoli. “We’ll take the point,” he stated.
Parma got off to a dream start at the Stadio Tardini when an unexpected pick, Nesta Elphege, flicked on a long Zion Suzuki ball for Gabriel Strefezza to score just 33 seconds into the match.
Despite being under pressure for extended periods, Parma’s defense, marshaled by a solid Scott McTominay, rarely allowed Napoli into dangerous positions, ultimately holding on for the draw.
“I want to thank my players for all the hard work they do on the field, but also the incredible help from the fans, who gave us the strength to run that extra bit to get to the ball first,” Cuesta told DAZN Italia.
“We wanted to make the fans happy with a victory, we didn’t manage it, but we’ll take the point. We are here to defend the Parma shirt with honour and know we have not achieved our objective yet, but we’re all in this together.”
This result marks the third consecutive draw between Parma and Napoli. It denied Antonio Conte’s side a sixth straight Serie A win and could potentially impact the Scudetto race, possibly aiding Cuesta’s predecessor, Cristian Chivu, at Inter.
The draw also helps Parma create more distance from the relegation zone, as they now sit nine points above the bottom three.
“I said from the first day I arrived that I didn’t have expectations, I just wanted to raise the bar. We know there are six games to go, but we’ve got to keep pushing. I saw incredible sacrifice, defending, team spirit, everyone helps each other out to bring home the result as a team,” the former Arsenal assistant manager continued.
“We know that at times we must adapt to the context of the match; usually, we prefer to keep more of the ball and stay in the opposition half, but we do our best.”
Elphege’s inclusion in the starting lineup for his Serie A debut, filling in for the suspended Mateo Pellegrino, proved impactful with his early assist. “He’s a good lad, everyone likes him, it was a very positive performance and we cannot ask him to simply replace Pellegrino, as they have different characteristics, but we hope he can have more consistency in future,” Cuesta explained.
Late in the game, there were penalty appeals when Leonardo Spinazzola’s effort struck teammate Alessandro Buongiorno’s arm, but the referee deemed the arm’s position to be natural.
“I haven’t seen the footage, but they told us it was not a penalty,” Cuesta noted.
