Arrigo Sacchi and Pepe Reina have questioned Aurelio De Laurentiis' criticism of Napoli coach Maurizio Sarri in the wake of their 3-1 defeat at Real Madrid on Wednesday night.
Napoli's 18-game unbeaten streak came to an end at the Bernabeu against the Champions League holders and De Laurentiis pointed the finger at Sarri for some of his choices.
Former AC Milan and Italy coach Sacchi, who had tipped Sarri's side for an upset ahead of the game, praised De Laurentiis for the job he has done since becoming Napoli's president 12 years ago but told him he stepped out of line on Wednesday.
"De Laurentiis has done a great deal for Napoli as a director, taking them from Serie C to the Bernabeu, which is some going," Sacchi wrote in his column in La Gazzetta dello Sport. "He's invested a lot and the club have grown, even if they are not yet a top club.
"But De Laurentiis should be kinder and more prudent with some things he says. But I think De Laurentiis does really have faith in Sarri."
His criticism did not go down well among the team, though, and goalkeeper Reina questioned the timing of his intervention after defeat on Wednesday night.
"We hadn't lost since October and when we were winning, nobody ever came out and said something," Reina said, according to Il Mattino. "We prepared the game very well, but it still wasn't enough. In spite of the mistakes, there was some good in the game, and now we'll give it our all at the San Paolo."
Sarri was also unhappy with De Laurentiis' words, saying: "The president can express his ideas, I'd rather he expressed them directly to me, but in the end I decide."
He added: "I saw him in the dressing room and he was very serene. When he tells me what he thinks, I will reply to him in the way I deem correct. It's true we did make more mistakes than usual, but we played a good game and didn't concede much."
Sacchi said those mistakes were understandable.
"Maybe Napoli were a bit intimidated by Real," he said. "But it's not easy to go and sing at La Scala. Your legs shake -- it's understandable. I think they can [turn it around at home]. If Sarri's lads succeed in forcing Real to defend, there could be a lot more entertainment to come in this tie."