UCL: Napoli manager congratulates 'mature' Milan

Napoli manager Luciano Spalletti has congratulated his counterpart Pioli and his AC Milan side for making it to the semifinal of the UEFA Champions League, UCL.

Spalletti sent his best wishes to the Rossoneri after an intense clash in the UCL quarterfinal second leg at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium on Tuesday night.

Napoli crashed out of the competition after a 1-1 draw saw them fail to overturn the 1-0 deficit from the first leg as Milan progressed 2-1 on aggregate.

Nigerian superstar Victor Osimhen scored the consolation goal for Napoli, who also missed a penalty in the game through Khvicha Kvaratskhelia.

Following the defeat in the quarterfinal, Spalletti had nothing but praise for Milan who had proved too good for his Napoli side in recent weeks.

“First of all, we congratulate Milan on their qualification,” the Napoli boss said of Milan after the game per Mediaset via Football Italia.

“They played two games in which they made the most of their chances, which is the sign of a mature team that knows when to press the accelerator and when to defend in numbers.’’

The Partenopei came into the encounter handicapped by the defeat in the first leg but came into the second leg confident of turning things around with the presence of Osimhen.

Napoli started on a positive note but soon found themselves 1-0 down in the second leg and 2-0 on aggregate when Olivier Giroud made amends for his earlier penalty miss in the game.

However, the Serie A leaders had the chance to draw level on the night but Kvaratskhelia missed from the spot.

Osimhen finally headed the leveller for the side from Naples but it turned out to be just a consolation as Milan held on for the win.

Spalletti and his side will switch attention to the Serie A where they are runaway leaders and are on course to end their 33-year wait to lift the title.