Napoli manager Antonio Conte has spoken to the Italian media ahead of his side’s clash with Empoli this weekend and he’s discussed his reasons for bringing in Billy Gilmour.
The Scotland international joined the Serie A side from Brighton & Hove Albion, after compatriot Scott McTominay had arrived from Manchester United.
Area Napoli have reported on Conte’s comments during his press conference today when he was asked about why the club signed Gilmour from Brighton. The Italian said he wanted to bring in a similar midfielder to Stanislav Lobotka and that they made it a priority to strengthen in central midfield during the last window.
Conte went on to say Gilmour is a midfielder they pinpointed and the fact he wanted the move helped in their decision to sign him.
“He has very similar characteristics to Lobotka, he has personality in playing the ball, if he hadn’t been in the squad we would have had a greater difficulty. The priority on the market was to find a replacement for Lobotka, the choice with Billy was very thoughtful and above all the boy wanted to come,” said the Napoli coach.
Gilmour’s arrival at Napoli has been low key when compared to to that of his international teammate McTominay, with the former Manchester United midfielder hitting the ground running with two goals in his first five games.
The former Brighton man is still waiting to make his first Serie A start for the Italian side, with Conte still selecting Lobotka as his holding midfielder. Gilmour played 90 minutes in Napoli’s 5-0 victory over Palermo in the Coppa Italia.
