Napoli have seemingly dropped interest in Igor Tudor and turned to Walter Mazzarri, but the reason behind it all is a summer offer for Antonio Conte.
The club has decided to sack Rudi Garcia after a dismal start to the campaign, culminating in the 1-1 Champions League draw with Union Berlin and 1-0 home defeat to Empoli in Serie A.
President Aurelio De Laurentiis seemed to target Tudor, but according to Sky Sport Italia and Sportitalia, the talks fell apart because the former Udinese, Verona and Marseille coach wants a minimum contract to June 2025.
All the club was offering was a deal to the end of the season plus unilateral option to extend for one more year.
Now De Laurentiis has turned to Mazzarri, who would be returning to the Stadio Maradona and above all ready to accept a mere seven-month contract.
The reason behind all this is still the ultimate target for Napoli, namely bringing Conte to the club.
He had been openly approached last month, but rejected it outright, insisting he wants to take this season off and spend time with his family.
Once that is over and he feels ready to return to work, Napoli want to be first in line, without any other pesky coach already under contract to get in the way.