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Parma secured a 1-1 draw against Napoli, with coach Carlos Cuesta praising the team's incredible sacrifice and spirit. Gabriel Strefezza scored early for Parma, while Scott McTominay equalized for Napoli.
Cuesta praise for āParma incredible sacrifice and spiritā in 1-1 with Napoli
Parma coach Carlos Cuesta hailed his teamās āincredible sacrifice and team spiritā to battle their way to a 1-1 draw with Napoli. āWeāll take the point.ā
It was the perfect start for Parma at the Stadio Tardini, as surprise pick Nesta Elphege flicked on the long Zion Suzuki ball for Gabriel Strefezza to score after 33 seconds.
Despite being pinned back for long periods, Parma were rarely forced into difficult saves, held to a 1-1 draw by the Scott McTominay low drive.
PARMA, ITALY ā APRIL 12: Carlos Cuesta, Head Coach of Parma Calcio and Gabriel Strefezza of Parma Calcio greet each other after the match during the Serie A match between Parma Calcio 1913 and SSC Napoli at Stadio Ennio Tardini on April 12, 2026 in Parma, Italy. (Photo by Emmanuele Ciancaglini/Getty Images)
āI want to thank my players for all the hard work they do on the field, but also the incredible help from the fans, who gave us the strength to run that extra bit to get to the ball first,ā Cuesta told DAZN Italia.
āWe wanted to make the fans happy with a victory, we didnāt manage it, but weāll take the point. We are here to defend the Parma shirt with honour and know we have not achieved our objective yet, but weāre all in this together.ā
This is the third consecutive draw between Parma and Napoli, denying Antonio Conte a sixth Serie A victory on the bounce and potentially handing the Scudetto to Cuestaās predecessor Cristian Chivu at Inter.
It also keeps the Ducali further away from the relegation zone, as they are currently nine points clear of the bottom three.
PARMA, ITALY ā APRIL 12: Gabriel Strefezza of Parma Calcio scores his teamās first goal during the Serie A match between Parma Calcio 1913 and SSC Napoli at Stadio Ennio Tardini on April 12, 2026 in Parma, Italy. (Photo by Emmanuele Ciancaglini/Getty Images)
āI said from the first day I arrived that I didnāt have expectations, I just wanted to raise the bar. We know there are six games to go, but weāve got to keep pushing. I saw incredible sacrifice, defending, team spirit, everyone helps each other out to bring home the result as a team,ā continued the former Arsenal assistant manager.
āWe know that at times we must adapt to the context of the match, usually we prefer to keep more of the ball and stay in the opposition half, but we do our best.ā
Elphege was an unexpected choice for his first Serie A start, replacing the suspended Mateo Pellegrino, and made an immediate impact with the assist.
āHeās a good lad, everyone likes him, it was a very positive performance and we cannot ask him to simply replace Pellegrino, as they have different characteristics, but we hope he can have more consistency in future,ā explained Cuesta.
PARMA, ITALY ā APRIL 12: Kevin De Bruyne of Napoli SSC competes for the ball with Emanuele Valeri of Parma Calcio during the Serie A match between Parma Calcio 1913 and SSC Napoli at Stadio Ennio Tardini on April 12, 2026 in Parma, Italy. (Photo by Emmanuele Ciancaglini/Getty Images)
There were penalty appeals late on when Leonardo Spinazzola kicked the ball onto the arm of teammate Alessandro Buongiorno, but it was evaluated as being in a natural position.
āI havenāt seen the footage, but they told us it was not a penalty,ā noted Cuesta.
The final score was 1-1.
Gabriel Strefezza scored for Parma, and Scott McTominay equalized for Napoli.
Carlos Cuesta praised the team's 'incredible sacrifice and spirit' during the match.
Parma scored just 33 seconds into the match.

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