Antonio Conte insisted his feet remain firmly planted on the ground despite Napoli's impressive start to the season which sees them at the summit of the Serie A table.
Napoli have taken 29 points from their opening 13 league games, a point more than Atalanta, Inter, Fiorentina and Lazio in a tightly-packed battle at the top of the standings.
Conte's side have impressed this season, particularly in defence, keeping eight clean sheets, with only Juventus (10) producing more in the top five European leagues.
The 55-year-old has won four Scudetto titles during his managerial career but was not getting carried away when asked about adding another to his collection.
"We have to be realistic and know that we're only on day 13 and there are six teams within a few points," Conte told reporters on Friday.
"It's a balanced league so far, and, in my opinion, I don't think it will stay that way until the end.
"At the end of the first half of the season, it [the list of contenders] will start to get a little longer. But we're pleased, it shows the work we're doing is good, and I'm happy.
"Day after day we're laying important foundations and I see a continuous growth as a team but also as individuals."
Up next for Napoli is a trip to the Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino to face 11th-placed Torino, who are without a win in their last four Serie A matches.
But Paolo Vanoli's side will have confidence of ending that winless streak after their showings against Napoli last season.
They went unbeaten in their two matches against Napoli last term (W1 D1), after a run of five defeats in a row, and could go at least three consecutive matches unbeaten against the Partenopei for the first time since between December 2007 and November 2012 in Serie A (run of five – W3 D2).
"It [Torino] is a solid group, it has good quality, it's in mid-table in a quiet way and without a win for a long time, so there are values," Conte said.
"I live in Turin, almost every Sunday I have the pleasure of going to see the game, and it's an environment that I know, nice and warm, strong, attached to history.
"We'll have to be very careful. It's a game to be approached in the right way, with respect for the quality of the opponent and the environment that we'll find and their history."
Milan captain Calabria hits out at questions over his commitment
Milan captain Davide Calabria has hit out at the criticism he has faced since coach Paulo Fonseca questioned the commitment of some of his players.
Fonseca was not impressed by the performance of some of his players in Milan's 2-1 win over Red Star Belgrade in the Champions League on Wednesday.
The Milan coach did not name those players, yet some supporters have sent ire Calabria's way.
In a social media post on Friday, Calabria fired back at his critics.
"A lot of misinformation has been circulating about me and our team over the last few days," he posted on his Instagram story.
" Fake news that deserves no weight.
"They only create confusion and division. I ask for respect for me, for our work and for the club we represent."
Calabria has dealt with several injuries since last year and has made only four league appearances this season due to adductor and calf issues.
"Our focus remains on the field, where we work every day with the utmost professionalism to improve," the 28-year-old added.
Milan, seventh in Serie A, host Genoa on Sunday.
KC defeats St. George’s College 1-0 to claim ISSA U-14 football crown; STATHS win U-16 title with 1-0 win over Excelsior
Kingston College are champions of the ISSA Burger King U-14 Urban Area football competition after a 1-0 win over North Street rivals St. George’s College in Friday’s final at Stadium East in Kingston.
KC didn’t have to wait long for the only goal of the game with Ras-Renaldinho Harriott slotting home comfortably past St. George’s goalkeeper Steven Dixon in the sixth minute.
The win also means the ‘Purples’ won two of the three major corporate area football competitions after their Manning Cup triumph over St. Catherine High earlier this month.
In the Mighty Malt U-16 final later at the same venue, St. Andrew Technical defeated Excelsior by a similar 1-0 score line.
Just like in the U-14 final, the winning goal came in the sixth minute when Kelvin Brown capitalized on some unsure Excelsior defending after a corner kick.
Martin embarrassed by Southampton's Premier League points tally
Russell Martin believes Southampton should have more points on the board in the Premier League this season ahead of their clash with Tottenham on Sunday.
The Saints have won just once this season, with two draws adding up to a dismal five points, which leaves them bottom of the standings having lost their other 12 games since promotion.
Southampton are winless in five matches in the top-flight, losing the last two on the bounce, and have a goal difference of minus 20, having conceded 31 goals while scoring just 11.
"We shouldn't be on the points that we are. It is incredibly hurtful and embarrassing to be on five points - we should have more," said Martin.
"But there have been a few too many mistakes and a few too many moments that we haven't managed well.
"We have had disappointments in games and setbacks, but we have to keep trying to grow - to grow as a group, to grow individually and prepare the players for those moments when it is tough and find ways for them to cope emotionally."
They face a Spurs side struggling for form, with Martin saying he has "a lot of respect" for under-pressure Ange Postecoglou.
Spurs have won just one of their last eight matches in all competitions, and are currently winless in five, with the manager coming under scrutiny for his style of play.
Postecoglou's side sit 11th in the table, seven points behind the top four ahead of the weekend, and he is keen to get the basics right to get back on track at St. Mary's.
"We can't dismiss the situation we're in at the moment," Postecoglou said. "We're very limited at the moment what we can do from a team perspective.
"There's a lot of players playing a lot of games, and they're giving their all, but they're going to lack a little bit of sharpness as we cannot give them a rest.
"Within that context, it's about making sure that there's some basics in our game that we push through."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Southampton – Ben Brereton Diaz
Ben Brereton Diaz has not won any of his 24 Premier League games in spells at Sheffield United (14) and Southampton (10), drawing six and losing 18.
Only Oliver Burke (25) has had a longer winless run from the start of a Premier League career, and it is a streak that the striker will be desperate to end sooner rather than later.
Tottenham – Dejan Kulusevski
Dejan Kulusevski could make his 100th Premier League appearance in this match, with his first also coming against Southampton back in February 2022.
He has 21 assists in the league, with only Son Heung-min providing more for Spurs since his debut (24).
MATCH PREDICTION: TOTTENHAM WIN
Tottenham are unbeaten in their last 13 Premier League games against sides starting the day bottom of the table (W10 D3), since a 1-0 loss at West Bromwich Albion in May 2018. Spurs have scored 42 goals in this run, netting at least three times in each of the last eight.
In fact, Spurs have only failed to score in one of their last 22 Premier League meetings with Southampton, a 1-0 away loss in January 2020.
However, Postecoglou's side have lost 14 of their 33 Premier League games so far in 2024 (W14 D5), just one fewer than they did in 42 games in 2023. They last lost 15+ league games in consecutive calendar years in 2002 (15), 2003 (20) and 2004 (15).
Southampton, meanwhile, have won just one of their last 28 Premier League games (D6 L21), with their 1-0 win over Everton in November their only clean sheet in their last 27 in the competition.
The Saints have also lost just one of their last six home league games against Spurs (W2 D3), going down 5-2 in September 2020.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Southampton – 25.3%
Draw – 22.5%
Tottenham – 52.3%
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