Having just spent slightly more than a year out of the professional managerial game following his departure from Tottenham Hotspur in March 2023, Antonio Conte is now back in the hot seat as he has been appointed as Napoli’s new gaffer.
The 54 year old Italian left the London club by mutual consent, and in the months since, he did feature pretty highly on the rumour mill as potentially being I Partenopei’s favourite option for the role, and with a three year deal now agreed at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, that has come to pass.
Whilst his spell with Spurs was hardly a standout moment in his long managerial career, his success in the game cannot be questioned. His spell at Chelsea delivered the Premier League title and an FA Cup, his time at Juventus saw him lift three Serie A titles in a row, and he took Inter Milan to their first Scudetto in eleven years back in 2021.
Although Napoli have seriously struggled to replicate their 2022/23 league form, that ultimately saw them quite comfortably win their own first Serie A title in 33 years, Conte will be confident that he will again get them quickly organised and he would hope for a far better finish than tenth place for his first full season in charge – but one big question that will have to be decided quickly is the future of often linked away star striker, Victor Osimhen.
With the announcement of his arrival being made, Conte said simply.
“Napoli is a place of global importance. I am happy and excited at the idea of sitting on the blue bench. I can certainly promise one thing, I will do my utmost for the growth of the team and the club. My commitment, together with that of my staff, it will be total.”
For Napoli fans, they will now be hoping that Conte can steady the ship and stop what has been a mini managerial merry-go-round since Serie A winner Luciano Spalletti left. Since then they have gone through Rudi Garcia, Walter Mazzarri and Francesco Calzona in the last 12 months alone.
Conte will certainly feel that this group of players should already have been performing better across the 2023/24 campaign, but he will naturally want to add a few faces of his own to shake the group up and bring a few fresher voices into the dressing room to help him more quickly turn things around.
It could be a busy couple of months for the club, particularly if Osimhen does move on given the figures that are being bandied around on the rumour mill.
