Antonio Conte's tenure at Napoli has come to an abrupt end, with the club appearing to be in a state of disarray. The former Chelsea, Inter Milan, and Tottenham boss concluded the Serie A season by accusing the club of harbouring 'a lot of poison'. Napoli have now officially announced his departure and are yet to appoint a successor, with Massimiliano Allegri emerging as the leading candidate for the role.
Unrest at the Club
There is significant unrest at Napoli, with controversial owner Aurelio De Laurentiis, 77, even making light of the possibility that key players Romelu Lukaku and Kevin De Bruyne could leave the club. De Laurentiis, who has been at the helm since rescuing Napoli from bankruptcy 21 years ago, is known for his outspoken nature. He previously stated he would not sign players who participated in the Africa Cup of Nations.
At a press conference announcing the end of Conte's two-year stint, De Laurentiis commented on Lukaku and De Bruyne: 'They've made statements that can be questioned or accepted, depending on your point of view. We'll see at work. The new coach's assessments. If they have to leave, they'll leave. The world is full of footballers.'
De Bruyne's Reaction
Kevin De Bruyne had previously spoken out against Conte's conservative style of play. When asked if he was relieved to see the manager go, De Bruyne said: 'Am I happy that Conte is leaving? For me, yes. As far as I'm concerned, he didn't have to stay.'
Conte's Explosive Exit
Conte's departure comes as no surprise, particularly after his explosive comments towards the end of the season, a move familiar to many of his former clubs, including Tottenham. He stated: 'On Napoli I failed in one thing: I wasn't able to bring compactness to Napoli and if you don't manage to do it, it becomes difficult to fight against other teams. I've seen a lot of poison and those who spread it are failures.'
He added: 'Napoli doesn't need failures, those who need a like. It needs serious people who want to love the team, just like the fan who pays for the ticket, instead these people should stay away because they are harmful. I failed from this point of view and I understood that I would never be able to compact the environment. For me it was fundamental, so I raised my hands.'
Conte also explained that he felt his time at Napoli was over after a 3-2 home defeat by Bologna, saying: 'After Bologna, what I felt were situations that I didn't like and even there it takes balls to say things. I have never played anonymous seasons and I never will. I was also ready to step aside, certainly some signings didn't get in tune with the old group and very difficult dynamics were created that were right to report. I called the president a month ago, I didn't want to know anything and I told him "by virtue of the friendship we have, I perceive that my journey here is about to end". The decision was taken by me.'
Allegri Frontrunner
Napoli won their fourth Scudetto under Conte last season but were distant runners-up to Inter Milan this term. Massimiliano Allegri, who was sacked by AC Milan at the end of the season after failing to lead them into the Champions League, having replaced Sérgio Conceição midway through the campaign, is now the frontrunner to take the helm at Napoli. He could be announced in the coming days.
De Laurentiis said: 'Napoli doesn't even have a coach at the moment, and even if we did, we couldn't announce it. You know the rules. It's pointless to make a mess. I will introduce the coach when the regulations allow me to. I'm not one to go against the rules. I can disagree with them, because sometimes they were made at a certain time and become outdated. We agree to play in a competition that has rules, and so we respect them. When the time comes to announce the coach, we will announce it.'
