Netherlands Star Argues Napoli 1-1 Inter Milan Serie A Draw ‘Not A Missed Opportunity’ – Adds ‘Lautaro Important For Us’ | OneFootball

Denzel Dumfries feels that yesterday’s Serie A draw between Napoli and Inter Milan was “not a missed opportunity” for the Nerazzurri.

The Dutchman spoke to Italian broadcaster SportMediaset, via FCInterNews, after the match. He also stressed the importance of captain Lautaro Martinez for Inter.

Inter Milan were close to extending their lead at the top of the Serie A table to four points.

As the ninety minutes ticked away, the Nerazzurri still had a 1-0 lead. That was courtesy of a spectacular first half free kick by Federico Dimarco.

However, Napoli managed to break through late on in yesterday’s match.

The Partenopei had pressed frenetically for the equalizer throughout the second half. But for much of it, Inter were equal to it, with nearly faultless penalty area defending.

However, an opening finally appeared. Napoli midfielder Stanislav Lobotka, his team’s outstanding player on the evening, found a gap to bring the ball into Inter’s penalty area, and substitute Phillip Billing forced the ball into the goal.

Denzel Dumfries Denies Napoli 1-1 Inter Milan Draw “Missed Opportunity” For The Nerazzurri

After yesterday’s match, Inter Milan wingback Denzel Dumfries was asked if it was a “missed opportunity” for the Nerazzurri.

“I don’t think so,” he said. “Not if you watched the match.”

MILAN, ITALY – FEBRUARY 22: Denzel Dumfries of FC Internazionale looks on, during the warm up prior to the Serie A match between FC Internazionale and Genoa at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on February 22, 2025 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

“We definitely wanted to win,” admitted the Netherlands international.

“But in the second half we had to suffer a lot.”

Dumfries declared that “I’m very proud of the team.”

“Because they did everything to defend our goal.”

“In the end, the 1-1 draw is fine,” Dumfries said of the result.

Meanwhile, Dumfries admitted that “On the pitch we weren’t playing at our best with the ball.”

“It’s impossible to play every match at our best,” the 28-year-old insisted.

“We tried to defend as much as possible. We tried to form a tough, compact defensive block.”

“It’s not good to concede goals like the one we did,” Dumfries said of Napoli’s late equalizer. “But the 1-1 isn’t a bad result.”

Of Inter’s struggles in the big matches this season, Dumfries admitted “I don’t know, sometimes that’s how it is.”

“We still have big matches ahead of us,” the former PSV wingback noted. Inter face Feyenoord in the Champions League this week.

“So we need to do better to win the most important matches, including against big teams. But we can’t look backwards, we have to look forwards.”

Meanwhile, Dumfries also gave his thoughts on the performance of captain Lautaro Martinez. “The whole team did their best,” he said.

“When you look at the team, I don’t think anyone played well with the ball.”

But Dumfries argued that Martinez “did a great job without it.”

“He ran a lot. He was in a lot of duels.”

“In this match we didn’t play well with the ball,” the Dutchman reiterated. “But Lautaro did a good job as our captain.”

“He’s very important for us, and we need him.”