ANTONIO CONTE has sounded the alarm after Napoli’s humiliating 6-2 thrashing by PSV.
The Italian manager warned the defeat could be the beginning of a deeper crisis sparked by summer “mistakes” in the transfer market.
Scott McTominay’s brace at the Philips Stadion was the only bright spot for travelling Napoli fans, who watched their side collapse in disastrous fashion during Tuesday night’s Champions League clash.
Despite winning Serie A under Conte last season and making a fairly solid start to their title defence, Napoli’s form has begun to unravel, with the Eindhoven nightmare coming just days after a 1-0 loss to Torino on Saturday.
Conte, clearly concerned too many changes were made in the summer, labelled Napoli’s transfer window a “mistake” during a fiery post-match press conference in the Netherlands.
The club brought in nine new signings, including Man City legend Kevin De Bruyne and Man United outcast Rasmus Hojlund.
He did not mention names but suggested too many changes might not be a good thing.
Conte said: “Last year we won an extraordinary and incredible championship where everyone pushed their limits with unity across the board.
“This year, however, between playing so many games and bringing in so many players… in my opinion, nine new players were too many.
“We weren’t balanced. I’ve always said this year would be difficult, there are some aspects that take time to absorb.
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“This is the level of the Champions League. We have little to say and a lot to work on.
“I live the dressing room every day, so I say certain things with purpose, we mustn’t despair. We’ll try to recreate last year’s chemistry.”
Conte, never one to sugar-coat, also issued a stern warning to his squad, fearing the 6-2 battering may not be a one-off.
He added: “We need to humble ourselves. I’ve been saying this for a while.
“Some people in Naples are blowing smoke and that’s a club that always needs to hear the truth.
“Both old and new players need to step up. We all need to step up, regardless of the red card.
“If we want to grow and build something that makes Napoli proud, we need to get back to last season, where only the good of Napoli mattered.
“The good of the individual is useless. The good of the team is what counts.
“And due to some over-the-top factors, many situations have arisen that I even enjoyed watching, given how shameless they were.
“I repeat, Napoli and the Neapolitans shouldn’t be taken for a ride.”
McTominay opened the scoring with a clinical finish on the half-hour mark before two quick-fire goals gave PSV control going into half-time.
Dennis Man then netted twice, in the 54th and 80th minutes to take the game away from the Italian champions, whose slim hopes of a comeback were crushed when Lorenzo Lucca saw red in the 76th minute for dissent.
A frantic finale saw McTominay bag his second in the 86th, before Ricardo Pepi and Couhaib Driouech piled on the misery with two more for PSV in the dying minutes.
While Hojlund missed the clash with a minor quadriceps injury, De Bruyne did feature and was slammed by the Italian press on Wednesday morning.
The Belgian was handed a dire 4.5/10 rating by Corriere dello Sport, who wrote: “He is seen very little, touches the ball very little and disappears when needed.
“With his experience, he should be carrying the team on his shoulders.”
Meanwhile, McTominay was described as Napoli’s “light in the darkness” for his standout two-goal display.
Club captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo, who received a harsh 4/10, admitted the team feels “fragile”, sparking more concern that Napoli may be heading for a full-blown crisis.
Di Lorenzo told Sky Sport Italia: “It was a horrible night.
“We need to stop, reflect and analyse what happened.
“We feel fragile right now, the opposite of last season when we were so solid.
“It’s true we’re trying something new in attack, but we conceded goals we should never concede.
“We’ve lost our balance, our desire not to concede, our defensive mentality.
“We must all question ourselves.”
Despite growing pressure and back-to-back defeats, Conte insisted he won’t change his system ahead of Saturday’s Serie A clash with Inter Milan.
He said: “If we win, everything’s fine. If we lose, everything’s bad?
“You’ve all praised the choice of using four midfielders.
“De Bruyne had a bad game and suddenly he can’t play? But after the Sporting match, he was irreplaceable.
“A good coach puts the best players in the starting eleven and creates the right chemistry.
“Tactically, what should we change? The balance we’ve found now is the best one.
“Having two very attacking wingers gives us no stability and I don’t think sacrificing a midfielder is the right choice.”
Meanwhile, Dutch authorities arrested 180 Napoli fans on the eve of the match, deporting them amid fears of potential disturbances, according to Football Italia.
A group of travelling supporters reportedly entered a designated safety zone in central Eindhoven and ignored multiple warnings to leave, leading to mass arrests.
Many of the detained fans couldn’t produce match tickets and were deported as a result.
