Conte apologizes to De Bruyne

De Bruyne was withdrawn early. Photo: Reuters .

The turning point of the match came in the 21st minute when Napoli defender Giovanni Di Lorenzo received a straight red card for a foul on Erling Haaland. This decision forced Conte to sacrifice De Bruyne and bring on defender Mathias Olivera, ending the Belgian midfielder's emotional return to his former club.

“I am very sorry and want to apologize to De Bruyne. He lost the opportunity to play at the stadium he was once attached to, but it was the only choice I could make at that time," Conte shared.

Despite being down to 10 men, Napoli held out for more than 50 minutes. However, in the 76th minute, Haaland headed home a cross from Phil Foden. Shortly after, Jeremy Doku skillfully dribbled past Napoli's defense to seal a 2-0 win for Man City.

Throughout the match, Conte repeatedly expressed frustration at his players' failure to keep the ball long enough to launch a counter-attack as originally planned. He said: "We are all disappointed. The team prepared well and entered the game as planned in the first 20 minutes. But the red card ruined everything. Facing Man City is already difficult, now having to play with 10 men for more than 70 minutes is almost impossible."

The match at Etihad ended in a one-sided scenario when Napoli suffered an early disadvantage. In the next match on October 1, Man City will visit Monaco, while Napoli will meet Sporting CP.