Antonio Conte makes feelings about Billy Gilmour very clear after Scot's performance at Milan
Antonio Conte has Napoli top of Serie A a after a nine-match unbeaten run, with Scottish midfield pair Billy Gilmour and Scott McTominay having a big part to play
by Tom Victor · The MirrorNapoli manager Antonio Conte showed his fondness for Billy Gilmour by handing the Scottish mifielder a huge hug after Tuesday's win away to AC Milan.
A title charge didn't appear likely when former Italy manager Conte suffered a 3-0 defeat at Verona in his first Serie A game with the club. However, after making some important signings late in the transfer window, results have improved... and then some.
Gilmour and international team-mate Scott McTominay have joined the 2022-23 champions, while Romelu Lukaku has been reunited with Conte after the pair won a Scudetto together with Internazionale. Napoli have proceeded to win eight of their last nine league matches, conceding just twice during that run.
A trip to the San Siro on Tuesday represented a real test, with Paulo Fonseca's Milan coming off three straight home league wins. It was the visitors who came out on top, though, with Conte making his feelings clear.
Gilmour has needed to be patient since joining from Brighton at the end of August. His first four Serie A outings came from the bench, but a spot in Conte's starting midfield opened up after Stanislav Lobotka was injured on international duty.
The Scot has started the last three games - 1-0 victories over Empoli and Lecce and the 2-0 win at Milan. Lukaku opened the scoring inside five minutes, with top scorer Khvicha Kvaratskhelia adding a second for Napoli before half-time.
Those three points saw Napoli briefly move seven points clear at the top. That gap narrowed to four on Wednesday, though, with Inter winning 3-0 up away to 10-man Empoli.
Will Napoli win Serie A this season? Have your say in the comments section
"I am proud of this team," Conte said after the win in Milan. "Today's success moved me because of the dedication that the boys showed on the pitch.
"Being in this position after 10 days would have been unthinkable at the start of the season. We must be proud but at the same time we remain balanced and humble because we know that we must always give our best to express our value to the fullest.
"This is one of the best groups of my career, I have players ready to die [in football terms] for this shirt and this gives me great joy as well as satisfaction," he added. "There is a beautiful relationship between the staff, the Club and the whole environment, you can breathe a clean air of enthusiasm and passion "
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read ourPrivacy Notice.
This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
Sky Sports deal
Sky Sports launches discounted Premier League package
£46 (was £56)
Sky has slashed the price of its Sky Sports, Sky Stream, Sky TV and Netflix bundle in an unbeatable new deal that saves £240 and includes 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.