Antonio Conte and Napoli seem destined to part ways, although the game isn’t totally over, and president Aurelio De Laurentiis could make a last-ditch effort to convince the boss to stay. However, he’s less adamant about it and more open to letting him out of his contract, Sky reports.
The gaffer has a year left on it. A renewal is improbable, as his salary is too large. He’d like to leave on good terms, as he’s fond of his stay overall. A lame-duck campaign could endanger that.
On the other hand, Conte is drained, and the Napoli brass would like to go back to a more sustainable way of doing business after spending big to please him in the last two seasons. The Partenopei are plotting to reduce the payroll and contain the spending this summer. The permanent acquisitions of Rasmus Hojlund and Alisson Santos have already put a dent in their budget.
The Azzurri have shortlisted Maurizio Sarri, Fabio Grosso, and Massimiliano Allegri in particular, with the first one topping the leaderboard, but the call isn’t imminent. De Laurentiis has doubts about the other candidates. If their search doesn’t yield acceptable results, he’ll ask their current manager to reconsider his stance. If he indeed leaves, he’ll either accept the Italy job or take a sabbatical. Despite some links to Juventus and Milan, it’d take a lot of convincing for him to jump onto another major project.
Our Take on Napoli and Conte
While their season is still somewhat successful, considering their injuries and what happened to other big sides, the fact that his golden touch took a hit and that he doesn’t seem headed to an arch-rival, and the club’s strategic shift make a divorce much less painful and somewhat understandable.
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