Napoli chief Aurelio De Laurentiis has defended his decision to hire Rudi Garcia as the Luciano Spalletti’s successor, as the Partenopei look to guard their reputation as Scudetto winners. The longtime Napoli patron hired Garcia after going through an extensive shortlist that included the likes of Luis Enrique, Julian Nagelsmann and Paulo Sousa.
Speaking at the presentation of Garcia as the new head coach (via Footmercato), De Laurentiis revealed what drew him to the ex-Marseille and Al-Nassr tactician.
“I saw the matches of Garcia’s teams, I began to see that he played successfully with the 4-3-3 and for me it was essential to maintain the structure of the players we have. I wanted a coach who can do excellent things with the 4-3-3 formation. A new coach, like Rudi Garcia, knows how to touch the strings of the violin to make it a Stradivarius.”
He further shed light on the French coach’s previous experiences.
“Seeing that Rudi finished second twice with Roma and that in the first year he had started with 10 consecutive victories, I thought he would fit our case. Then I also saw that with Lyon he came close to something important in the Champions League and you know how much I care about the European competition.”
Garcia left Al-Nassr by mutual agreement in April after reports arose of complications with star Cristiano Ronaldo. Napoli will carry out pre-season preparations at Dimaro Folgarida in Val di Sole, starting from July 8.
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