Antonio Conte is one of the most successful Italian coaches of the last 15 years – and is now set to use his wealth of experience to lead SSC Napoli to new heights
Just two and a half weeks ago, everything looked set for Gian Piero Gasperini. The successful coach of Atalanta Bergamo had led the small club from Lombardy to a Europa League victory (3:0) against previously unbeaten Bayer Leverkusen after a strong few years and then spoke openly about the offers from Naples. His quote: “I find myself in a strange situation where I’m married and have children, but I’m meeting an absolutely beautiful woman.”
The beautiful woman named Napoli was ultimately unable to persuade Gasperini, who is likely to extend his stay in Bergamo, to sign – but has now successfully charmed Antonio Conte. The coach, who was out of work following his clear attack on the club’s management in March 2023, has now signed a contract until June 30, 2027, as had been assumed for days
Conte’s promise – De Laurentiis speaks of “new chapter “
“Napoli is a place of global importance. I’m happy and excited about the idea of sitting on the Azzurri bench,” said Conte. “I can promise one thing with certainty: I will do my best for the growth of the team and the club. I will be fully committed together with my staff.” President Aurelio De Laurentiis also declared that Conte is a “top coach” and a “leader”.
Nothing less than a 180-degree turnaround at SSC is expected of Conte – especially from de Laurentiis, who has basically been on the attack against record champions Juventus and all the other big clubs since taking over in 2004. “Today marks the beginning of a new, important chapter in Napoli’s history,” the president continued.
Three SSC coaches in one season
The traditional club led by Luciano Spalletti to the coveted third Serie A championship in 2022/23 after 33 years had crashed in the most recent season. De Laurentiis intervened several times: No fewer than three coaches (Rudi Garcia, Walter Mazzarri and most recently Francesco Calzona) were allowed to try their hand with the team, which was still strongly positioned around the two attacking artists Victor Osimhen and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who are now likely to flush transfer revenue into the coffers in the summer – and yet ultimately left the Neapolitans in an extremely disappointing tenth (!) place with no international business. A return to Europe will certainly be the new man’s minimum goal.
Conte has a wealth of experience at his disposal for his task of leading Napoli back into Italy’s top flight. After all, the former midfielder (Lecce and many, many years at Juventus) has already coached big clubs such as Juventus, Chelsea, Inter Milan and, most recently, Tottenham.
The 54-year-old has also coached the Italian national team – and has won four Serie A championships (three with Juve, one with Milan) as well as a Premier League and Europa League title (both with Chelsea). Now he can show whether he can also celebrate success with the Partenopei close to home – his birthplace Lecce and Naples are around four hours apart. His usual critical owner and president will certainly be keeping a close eye on things
