Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis does not want to be in a tough spot if Luciano Spalletti ends up leaving the club and has identified three possible replacements, reports detail.
The 64-year-old Italian coach was the architect of the Partenopei’s Scudetto this season, deploying an electric brand of attacking football that helped the team storm Serie A almost unopposed.
Spalletti’s contract expires with Napoli in June and De Laurentiis decided to activate the one-year renewal clause, something that wasn’t fully appreciated by the coach, who wanted to meet with the club’s management and discuss the next steps of the project.
Corriere della Sera details how Spalletti is also expected to receive a raise to his current €2.8m net per season wages, a salary that’s far below what his counterparts earn at the other top teams in Europe.
Massimiliano Allegri tops the list with a salary of €7m plus €2m in add-ons, and behind him is Jose Mourinho (€7m), Simone Inzaghi (€5.5m) and Stefano Pioli (€4.5m).
Should Spalletti ultimately leave this summer, De Laurentiis does not want to be caught unprepared and so has highlighted three possible replacements for the 64-year-old.
The candidates for now are Fiorentina’s Vincenzo Italiano, Brighton’s Roberto De Zerbi and the currently unattached Antonio Conte, fresh from his time with Tottenham.