Antonio Decaro, the mayor of Bari, asked Aurelio De Laurentiis to apologise after he suggested that the Galletti are simply ‘the second team’ of Napoli.
The Partenopei president held a long and explosive press conference at Castel Volturno on Wednesday morning, discussing everything from Luciano Spalletti’s exit and the challenges surrounding his replacement to Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s contract extension and the proposed Super League.
During that press conference, De Laurentiis also briefly stated that Bari – the other club he owns, in Serie B – are Napoli’s second team. Should the Galletti achieve promotion to Serie A, he’d be forced to sell, similar to what happened with Lazio owner Claudio Lotito and Salernitana.
Writing on his Instagram page, the mayor of Bari Decaro responded to De Laurentiis’ comments, challenging the notion that the Galletti are simply a ‘second team’.
“Among the duties of those who hold the sporting title, there is not only that of keeping the accounts in order.
“There is that, perhaps more important, of representing the colours of an entire city, of showing respect to those who pay for the tickets every week, travel long distances for business trips or even simply suffer and celebrate in front of the TV.
“This is why I find the words of Aurelio De Laurentiis, who defines Bari as a second team of Napoli, offensive towards the entire community of Bari fans. With all due respect to Napoli, we are nobody’s second team.
“We have a history and a dignity that cannot be vilified in this way. As mayor and fan, I ask Aurelio De Laurentiis to apologise as soon as possible to all the people of Bari for this unfortunate exit, to say the least, which hurts our passion and our identity.”
Bari currently sit 15th in the Serie B table after 23 games, having picked up five wins, 12 draws and six losses.
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