Announced several days ago, Antonio Conte’s departure from Napoli is now official. The Italian coach bows out after a remarkable season, crowned by a return to the Champions League, which was the main objective set for him upon his arrival on the Neapolitan bench. With 23 victories in Serie A for a final second place in the standings, Conte will have accomplished in one year what the club took time to find after the coronation of 2023 thanks to sporting credibility and the unity of a group capable of fighting for the Scudetto.
However, behind the results, the season has been anything but a smooth ride. The former Juventus and Chelsea coach himself admitted to having gone through a period of deep doubt, to the point of considering leaving earlier in the season. Ultimately, it was the dialogues with his group, and the collective response that followed, that convinced him to move forward. However, for his part, the 56-year-old coach knew that he had been living in Campania in recent months. During his departure press conference this Sunday, Conte did not mince his words: “After Bologna, I noticed situations that I didn’t like, and there too, you have to have guts to say things as they are. I’ve never done a dull season and I never will. I was even ready to withdraw. It is certain that certain newcomers had not integrated into the existing group and that very difficult dynamics had been created, which had to be denounced. I was lucky enough to meet a group with whom we spoke clearly, agreed that we had to row in the same direction despite the headwind, and set off again. I called the president a month ago, I didn’t want to know anything and I told him: “By virtue of the friendship between us, I feel that my journey here is coming to an end.” The decision came from me.”
Antonio Conte takes out the sulphate!
Visibly blunted by the complex environment of Naples, Conte was keen to castigate certain opponents of his project, who got the better of his motivation to listen to him: “in Naples, I failed on one point: I did not succeed in bringing cohesion to Napoli, and if we do not succeed, it becomes difficult to compete with the other teams. I’ve seen a lot of venom, and those who spread it are failures. Naples doesn’t need failures, nor those who need a like. He needs serious people who want to love the team, just like the fan who pays for his ticket; on the contrary, these people should move away because they are harmful. I failed on this point and I understood that I would never succeed in uniting the team. For me, it was fundamental, so I gave up. I take responsibility, as I always have. I feel satisfaction, prestige and honor for having coached Naples: I thank the president for this opportunity, I experienced it with passion, as I like it. The Napoli fan understood me and that’s what matters most.»
Despite this vindictive tone, the door is still open on the side of President Aurelio De Laurentiis, who still hopes for an about-face from his coach: “he can always change his mind, which is why I told him of my availability. Tomorrow afternoon he will confirm to me that the decision is made, then we will take action and we will see what is the best solution for Napoli. Keep in mind that we have around 30 talented players, so with very little new reinforcements, the team will be extremely competitive, even against our competitors. The problem is not so much what Napoli will do, I told Giovanni Manna that everyone has a big puzzle to solve. Because the problem of overhauling Italian football is not an easy matter.» Summer promises to be hot in Naples…
