Napoli fans are sad to see Lorenzo Insigne head towards Toronto FC, but ultimately blame President Aurelio De Laurentiis for losing yet another local hero.
There are strong reports today that Insigne has agreed personal terms with MLS club Toronto FC and will join them as a free agent in July, once his contract with the Partenopei has expired.
It means Napoli losing one of their most valuable players, not to mention their captain, for free because he was offered the opportunity to remain only with a substantial pay cut.
Considering his impressive UEFA EURO 2020 performances over the summer, many in Naples see this as yet another example of De Laurentiis imposing his control over the club.
It is hardly the first time, because Napoli supporters have seen many of their previous heroes storm out and make little secret of the fact they’d remain if not for ADL.
De Laurentiis is one of the only remaining figures of a style of Italian football President they called ‘Padre-Padrone’, like an over-bearing father who wants to control every area of his children’s lives.
Insigne will be the last of the players heavily involved in the ‘mutiny’ under Carlo Ancelotti to be effectively thrown out of the club.
Many of them were as free agents, from Allan to Elseid Hysaj and Jose Callejon, who had refused to go back into a training retreat.
These are more extreme versions, but by no means alone, because De Laurentiis also clashed with Gonzalo Higuain and Edinson Cavani, kept Marek Hamsik hanging for months and is now doing the same to all-time top scorer Dries Mertens.
Repubblica newspaper today report ADL demanded a stop to negotiations for a new contract with Fabian Ruiz, because failure to qualify for the Champions League has seen him slash costs both on the transfer market and above all in salaries.
Napoli had a very strong start to the season, but effectively shoving Insigne and Mertens out of the door to bring in cheaper alternatives is no way of maintaining a title push.
Lets not forget Ancelotti and Gattuso. This guy ADL truly is a disgrace to Italian Soccer. Besides his personality he is a snake and was involved with the super league idea with Agnelli then slithered out of it like the snake that he is. I blame the fans they should boycott this team. I am a Napoli fan and for this i would not support the team for this travesty. This guy is an arrogant lying snake and on top of that an incompetent Owner. Truly a blemish on Seria A. When will Italy wake up to this destruction of Italian players and the youth systems. Watering down of the league with foreign garbage. This is why Italy are barely hanging on in National competitions if hanging on at all.
What happens with Carlo Ancelotti?
The only disgrace for me is Insigne himself, with his inconsistency and unacceptable demands, he certainly does not know where is his place… You guys do not understand the financial situation in Napoli after two years without CHL. He was never a top player and never will be, if he really wanted to leave, he should have done that now, so that club would have at least some compensation. I would put him out of the squad immediately, what his motivation will be like now?
Btw, I do not know about any conflicts of ADL with Cavani and Hamšík and I have been supporting Napoli for more than 10 years. These guys were real professionals, not like Insigne who was always angry when substituted after a poor performance.
@andrej, his demands have hardly been excessive and after a exceptional Euros deserved a contract – EQUAL to the one he was currently on.
ADL offering him £1.5m million less than his current deal (OK, linked to bonuses) but it’s still poor for a Neopolitan who’d given everything for the team. He deserved to be treated with respect, but was forced out. Money is tight, but that’s no excuse for low-balling your captain.
Poor show and I can’t imagine what morale will be like with this team now – with him and Mertens pushed out. Unless they want to humiliate ADL by winning the league, the Champions League looks like a distant prospect.
andrej, you dont remember that ancelotti left ADl tried to have the team go in retreat and the team did not obey and then Gattuso ripped up his contract because he tried to impose penalties if he left early. This guy thinks he is running a multinational. Let me ask u if u work for someone and they come to u to decrease ur pay after u give everything what would u do. LEts not forget this guy brough Italy the Euro in a # 10 not even Baggio or any other player did this for 50+ years. So think about what u r saying. At a certain point it becomes principle. U bring in Oshimen and inferior and sub-par player and pay him whatever u give him what do u think that does to morale.
congratulations to Insigne, after all he will get a higher salary at Toronto fc. He deserves it.