In the 2022-23 campaign, the Ciucciarelli romped to the Scudetto for the first time since the days of Diego Maradona, and they did so in blistering fashion. In 2023-24, however, their defence of the crown couldn’t have gone much worse. President Aurelio De Laurentiis changed three coaches, Rudi Garcia, Walter Mazzarri and Francesco Calzona, but none of them was able to motivate the players enough and equal Spalletti’s tactical brilliance so the Partenopei finished outside a European placement in Serie A.
It’s clear that some things have to change in Naples, and they need to do so quickly. Here are three ways in which the team from Naples can improve and become a contender once again.
Follow Conte’s guidance
The Partenopei have just appointed Antonio Conte as their new head coach. The former Old Lady and Nerazzurri tactician has already won the Scudetto four times as a coach and signed a three-year deal at the Stadio Maradona. When Spalletti left the club after a legendary title-winning campaign, joining Italy a few weeks later, he left a void that not even three coaches in one season were able to fill.
Since then, however, things have gone from bad to worse. Walter Mazzarri came in to replace Garcia in November and lost five games, leaving the club way down in ninth place. Since then, Slovakian national team manager Francesco Calzona was appointed on an interim basis until the end of the season, and things have hardly improved.
New Napoli coach Conte has the same aura and charisma as the current Azzurri CT and is one of those tacticians who can quickly turn things around.
However, ADL and new director Giovanni Manna will need to follow his guidance and advice pretty closely because Conte is known to be very demanding when it comes to transfer. He’ll have very clear ideas on what the team will need in terms of new signings to compete with the top clubs once again in 2024-24.
On paper, the decision to appoint Conte seems wise because he’s one of the few coaches who can improve a team’s results in a short period of time. The Partenopei had also been linked with José Mourinho after the Special One was sacked by Roma, but ADL ruled out the Portuguese’s appointment pretty soon.
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— Official SSC Napoli (@sscnapoli) May 11, 2024
Corporate Partnerships
The gambling industry has skillfully intertwined itself with the world of football, creating opportunities for fans to engage beyond merely betting on matches. Now, highly popular sports-themed casino games, like NetEnt’s Football Champions Cup, are designed specifically to entertain fans even outside of matchday. Furthermore, Evolution Gaming has added to the sheer range of live casino games on platforms across the world with their Football Studio game at https://casinodays-india.in/, bringing online casinos closer to the beautiful game than ever before.
Napoli is a team that has noticed this ever-strengthening collaboration between the two worlds and cashed in. They currently have two betting partners — albeit with one being labelled as an “infotainment” partner — and both those relationships will continue throughout the 2024/25 season. However, next summer, they will come to an end, and the club has the option to either strengthen their current deals or seek extra funding from elsewhere. One certain thing is that if the club plans on becoming a major player on the continent, it certainly needs to partner with the right companies to expand its footprint.
Sell Victor Osimhen
Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen is, without a doubt, a jewel in the Napoli crown. He fired home 31 goals in 39 games across all competitions in 2022-23 and managed 17 more in 2023-24 this season despite a few injuries and the AFCON that ruled him out for over a month at a club level. The highly reputable Transfermarkt currently values the former Lille man at €110m, and now is the time for Napoli to cash in.
Osi recently signed a contract extension until 2026, but it includes a €130m clause that many clubs are considering activating. Osimhen has made history at Napoli, but perhaps the best thing for both parties is to split and have a fresh start.
Osimhen has attracted interest from Premier League clubs and PSG and Conte would happily replace him with his talisman Romelu Lukaku, who will return to Chelsea after a one-season loan in Rome.
Do not forget that with the additional funds coming from Osimhen’s sale in the club’s coffers, the Partenopei can strengthen several positions, specifically in defence and midfield.