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• Conte embracing Napoli improvements after Como triumph

  Antonio Conte is embracing Napoli's recent run of form after they extended their lead at the Serie A summit to four points ahead of the international break. 

  Scott McTominay's early opener was cancelled out by Gabriel Strefezza, only for star man Romelu Lukaku and substitute David Neres to seal the win after the break. 

  Conte is now the sixth manager to have won each of his first four home games as Napoli head coach in Serie A, after Paolo Iodice, Luis Vinicio, Alberto Bigon, Carlo Ancelotti and Luciano Spalletti.

  The Italian, however, started his Napoli reign with a shock 3-0 defeat to Hellas Verona on the opening day, but his team have since gone seven games unbeaten, scoring 19 goals during that run. 

  Conte acknowledged that his side may not deserve to be at the top of the table, but felt quietly optimistic about his players' progression during the early stages of his tenure.

  "I don't know if this is currently a Napoli that deserves to be in first place in the standings, but we are first and that is a fact," Conte said to DAZN.

  "If someone had told me this three months ago, it would have been difficult to believe.

  "We're growing in terms of temperament, and in our ability to adapt—playing good football, but also willing to get our hands dirty when we need to.

  "That's a great sign, and we have to embrace it fully."

  But the encounter against Como was far from comfortable for Conte's side, with the visitors registering 11 shots compared to Napoli's nine, while Cesc Fabregas' men also ended the contest with 59.3% possession. 

  Napoli, though, created the better chances, ending the encounter with an expected goals (xG) total of 2.02 from their six efforts on target, with Lukaku continuing to flourish under Conte's stewardship. 

  McTominay's opening goal after 26 seconds was the third-quickest for Napoli in the three-points-per-game era, while the former Manchester United midfielder also became the first Scottish player to score for Gli Azzurri in Serie A. 

  "We started well in the first half, scoring a great goal, the result of our hard work," Conte said.

  "Then we changed things tactically in the second half, and they were no longer in the game.

  "We lost too many duels, but that's part of the process of rebuilding confidence and self-esteem."

  Conte also showered praise on the home supporters inside the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona. 

  "Playing in Naples, at the Maradona, with a full stadium means that the players can really feel the crowd's emotions," he said. 

  If you make mistakes, you can feel the disappointment, and that can chip away at your confidence.

  "Napoli has a deep passion for football. We try to feed that passion by giving our all, like we did today. In the second half, we improved from every point of view."

• Napoli 3-1 Como: Lukaku stars to keep hosts at Serie A summit

  Romelu Lukaku continued his fine start to life at Napoli as the Belgian notched a goal and two assists in his side's 3-1 win over Como on Friday. 

  The hosts found themselves ahead with just 26 seconds on the clock when Scott McTominay was picked out by Lukaku, with the Scotland international firing home his first goal for Gli Azzurri off the post. 

  But Como would draw themselves level two minutes before the break when Gabriel Strefezza's strike from distance rifled into the bottom corner. 

  However, Antonio Conte's side needed just eight minutes after the interval to restore their advantage when Sergi Roberto brought down Mathias Olivera, with Lukaku stepping up to net his fourth Serie A goal of the season. 

  Napoli continued to push for a third goal to secure the victory, with Khvicha Kvaratskhelia going closest but saw his effort saved by Emil Audero. 

  But the points were sealed in the 86th minute when Lukaku turned provider once again, holding off his marker before slipping through substitute David Neres who slotted home with a fine finish to extend Napoli's lead at the top of the standings to four points. 

  Data Debrief: Lukaku continues Conte love story

  Lukaku has been a player reborn under Conte's stewardship. The Belgian is the player who has been involved in the most goals in his first five appearances for Napoli in Serie A since the Italian top-flight returned to 20 teams (since 2004/05) - three goals and four assists. 

  He has also managed to better his assist tally for the whole of last season, managing just three in 32 appearances for Roma last term. 

  McTominay's goal after 26 seconds is the third-fastest scored by Napoli since the start of a Serie A match in the three points for a win era, after Hirving Lozano's goal against Hellas Verona in 2021 (nine seconds) and Ezequiel Lavezzi's goal against Genoa in 2008 (25 seconds).

• Maresca: Chelsea 'not ready' to compete for trophies with Man City and Arsenal

  Enzo Maresca says that Chelsea "are not ready" to compete for major trophies against Manchester City and Arsenal this season.

  The Blues have made a strong start to life under Maresca, losing just two of their 10 matches so far.

  They are currently on a five-match winning run in all competitions, most recently seeing off Gent 4-2 in their Conference League opener on Thursday.

  So far, Chelsea have scored 27 goals under the Italian, with 15 of those coming in the league, outperforming their 12.2 expected goals (xG), and only failed to score in their opening Premier League match against City.

  However, Maresca has insisted people should not get carried away by Chelsea's recent form, playing down their chances of lifting any silverware this campaign.

  "I really don't think we can compete with City or Arsenal," Maresca said.

  "I really don't think that, because we are not ready. The reason is that City has worked with the same manager for nine years and Arsenal for five years. If you want to compete for big things, you need that time.

  "After Arsenal beat PSG [in the Champions League] they asked Luis Enrique, and he said the same thing, that Arsenal have had the same manager for five years and [PSG] only a year and a half.

  "Imagine us, only three months… so it's a huge difference. So, I am really convinced we cannot compete with those clubs."

  Before Maresca's appointment, Mauricio Pochettino only spent a season at Stamford Bridge, while Graham Potter before him was only in the position for just under seven months.

  After another busy transfer window for Chelsea saw them bring in 13 players, Maresca has urged for patience as they continue to find their footing in the early stages of his tenure.

  "The target is to improve and slowly, slowly to get closer to those clubs but at the moment we are not ready for that," he added.

  “There is no timeframe because you can continue to improve and add solutions to things always.”

  Chelsea face Nottingham Forest at home on Sunday in their final match before the international break.