Conte on Napoli’s ‘phase two’, ‘clear’ Osimhen situation and ‘pros and cons’ seen at Chelsea

Napoli coach Antonio Conte insists that there is a ‘lot of work’ to do and that the ‘phase two’ of the summer transfer window begins considering the ‘pros and cons’ he saw at Chelsea.

Conte released an interview with Rai Sport to take stock after the first few days of pre-season in Dimaro.

“I’ve received a lot of affection, but I haven’t done anything yet. I realise we have to rebuild, working with the lads on the training pitch,” he said.

“I think we have re-aligned the ideas, we clarified the situation of some footballers who are important to me. Now, the second phase starts. It’s about understanding who is worthy of Napoli and who is not. After the pre-season retreat, we’ll understand if there is a lot of work to do with the sporting director.”

Conte on Napoli’s ‘phase two’, ‘clear’ Osimhen situation and ‘pros and cons’ seen at Chelsea

Napoli have already signed Rafa Marin, Leonardo Spinazzola and Alessandro Buongiorno.

“We are working regularly, trying to improve in every aspect, technically, tactically, and mentally,” said Conte.

“Sometimes, we tend to give up when we are tired, but we must improve in this aspect. I repeat: I see that there is a lot to do. The fans have great enthusiasm, but we must be very focused and do more than last season.”

Does this mean the team is not up to his expectations currently?

“I didn’t expect anything. I expected to make assessments,” the coach replied.

“I can see that there is a lot of work to do. We don’t start from a high position, we start from a middle position.”

Conte won the domestic title the last time he was hired by a club that didn’t play in European competitions. It happened at Chelsea in the 2016-17 campaign, but the Italian tactician admits that it was not necessarily a favourable situation.

“There is an advantage and a disadvantage,” he said.

“The advantage is that you have time to work for the entire week. The disadvantage is that you don’t build a team that is competitive for the Champions League. This is the thing. There are pros and cons. We’ll try to make the most of the pros. We undoubtedly must build a good team. Now, the second phase starts. We must understand who can stay here and who should play elsewhere.”

Victor Osimhen’s agent is in talks with PSG, but there are no major updates regarding the Nigerian striker’s sale. Does Conte fear that stalling talks will affect Napoli’s transfer activity?

“The situation was already very clear,” he admitted.

“I was aware of it. It’s all going as planned. To me, it’s not a surprise to wait. We face every situation in the right way. As I said, first, we re-aligned, now we evaluate, and then there will be sales and new signings. The vision is very clear. There will be no problems.”

When asked whether Inter are still the favourite to win the title, Conte replied: “I don’t know. I let the others make predictions.”

During the same interview, Conte also discussed the state of Italian football denying that it is in crisis despite a disappointing EURO 2024 elimination.