Antonio Conte unimpressed by Kevin De Bruyne reaction to substitution in Napoli loss to AC Milan - ‘He’s got the wrong person’
Published 29/09/2025 at 15:24 GMT+1
Napoli manager Antonio Conte was quick to deflect questions about the reaction his player Kevin De Bruyne had to being substituted against AC Milan on Sunday. The former Manchester City player looked visibly frustrated after being brought off, having scored a penalty in the defeat to Napoli’s Serie A rivals. AC Milan won 2-1 to remain top of the table.
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Napoli’s Kevin De Bruyne was left looking unimpressed after being substituted against AC Milan on Sunday.
The Belgian star had scored from the penalty spot with Napoli trailing by two goals against their Serie A rivals, to bring his side back into the match after being tripped in the box.
Although they ended up losing 2-1, the match will be remembered for the touchline controversy rather than any on-field play.
Manager Antonio Conte opted to substitute De Bruyne in the 73rd minute of the match, bringing on Eljif Elmas.
Scott McTominay and Rasmus Hojlund were also brought off at the same moment, but it was De Bruyne’s reaction that was notable, as the Belgian walked straight to the bench, without acknowledging his manager in any way.
Conte was asked about the incident afterwards, and said, as reported by Goal.com: "I hope he was upset about the result, because if he was upset about something else, he's got the wrong person…
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"I tried to bring in fresh players for one-on-one situations because Milan were closing down a lot.
"I swapped the striker for [Lorenzo] Lucca and nothing happened... You make substitutions to try and do something good. I think they were the right changes."
De Bruyne left Manchester City for Napoli after a period with the English club that yielded a huge amount of success including a UEFA Champions League winner's medal and six Premier League titles.
He has scored three goals in his five appearances for Napoli so far - but even his status within the game was not enough to yield any sympathy from his new boss.
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Napoli sit second in the table, level on points with Milan with four wins and one loss from their opening five matches.
But they have been shipping goals - and with a crucial Champions League match to come this week against Sporting CP, Conte knows his side need to improve fast.
"We've conceded a few more goals lately, seeing as we did the two goals against Pisa, the two goals today, and the goal against Fiorentina," he added.
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"Defensiveness has always been our strength, we'll have to be good at improving.
"Coming here with this performance and playing with this quality against Milan, who are a tough and physically strong team… If they close down, it becomes difficult. It has to give us a good feeling as a team."
Napoli's clash with Sporting is live on TNT Sports and discovery+ on Wednesday evening, with Conte's men having lost their European opener at Man City, while the Portuguese club eased to a 4-1 win over Kairat on Matchday 1.
The reigning Serie A champions follow that with another home game on Sunday, against Genoa.
Stream the Premier League, Men’s and Women’s FA Cup, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League and more on TNT Sports and discovery+
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