Napoli president Aurelio de Laurentiis was upset after their Supercoppa Italiana final defeat to Inter Milan.
Napoli were holding out for penalties, having played with ten-men after Giovanni Simeone's red card on the hour mark. But Lautaro Martinez's late finish saw Inter win the final 1-0.
“We are in the midst of the transfer window, we have already made three new signings, one of whom is playing, another two are coming in. Napoli are still a work in progress," De Laurentiis told Mediaset.
“Having said that, we do not blame those who won, and luck is a big factor in these things, but I saw a Napoli team that is growing.
“Despite being down to 10 men, despite all the absences, I saw a Napoli that caused all sorts of problems for Inter. When the ball goes into the net, you cannot recriminate for that.
“I am sad for (ref chief Gianluca) Rocchi, who is having a nightmare. The fans are the fans, when I turn into a fan, I can hit very hard indeed. I don't think that is necessary this time.
“The weakness of the referees this season – not just towards Napoli, but towards everyone – is clear for all to see. In fact, I sat with Rocchi before the game and wondered what huge embarrassment he would have to deal with next.
“Just as Saudi Arabia use us to promote themselves, we should've used them to promote Italian football, yet it was ruined by one of the teams going down to 10 men."
On staging the tournament in Saudi Arabia, De Laurentiis was more positive.
“The marvellous thing about this Supercoppa Final Four is that I didn't want it four or five months ago, because there are too many games already and we should not have added fixtures outside of Italy too. I think from next season, with the increase of games that UEFA have already imposed in all competitions, there is no real reason for this trophy to exist," said De Laurentiis.
“I was surprised to discover a Saudi Arabia that has shown remarkable growth and democratisation, making it the new centre of the commercial world. I saw a place that overshadows Disneyland. They have 100,000 cranes working to build a new nation that will challenge everyone.
“They are very smart to use these football tournaments as a sort of advert to attract people, and it will go even more in 2030 with the World Cup, but I don't think we will wait that long. I can see things growing so much within six months."