Napoli continue to be the most determined Italian suitors for Antonio Conte despite other openings. The parties recently had a summit in Turin, where the gaffer resides. The Azzurri’s president Aurelio De Laurentiis wasn’t there.
According to Alfredo Pedullà, the Partenopei tendered a €6.5/7M base salary plus a €2M bonus if they qualified for the Champions League next season. The add-on would become part of his wages in the future.
While discussing the transfer market and the Napoli squad, Conte didn’t make any direct request but suggested they’d need a new center-back, a box-to-box, and a good striker to substitute for Victo Osimhen.
The gaffer is open to the destination, but De Laurentiis is keeping in touch with other options too. In particular, the chairman wants to convince Gian Piero Gasperini, but he’ll have to wait for Atalanta’s two finals. Stefano Pioli and Vincenzo Italiano are behind now.
At this stage, Milan and Juventus haven’t had any direct contact with the Italian boss.
In other coaching news, Bologna would be keen on Maurizio Sarri if Thiago Motta left. The ex-Lazio coach turned down Nottingham Forest and is being courted also by Torino and Sevilla, but he’ll wait for the carousel at the top of Serie A first.
Our Take on Napoli and Conte
The good news for the Azzurri is that there’s only lukewarm interest in him from other sides, but the longer they want, the more they expose themselves to a dark horse.
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