Napoli have moved quickly to confirm the exit of coach Antonio Conte, issuing a short four-word message less than a day after the Italian manager revealed he would step away in a tense press gathering that saw him exchange heated words with club president Aurelio De Laurentiis.<\/p>\n
\u201cThanks for everything, coach,\u201d Napoli posted on their social media channels.<\/p>\n
Conte\u2019s departure comes after Napoli finished their campaign with a 1-0 win at home against Udinese on Sunday, a result that secured second place in Serie A behind champions Inter Milan. Conte had announced his decision to step down at a press conference before the confrontation with De Laurentiis.<\/p>\n
De Laurentiis argued that Napoli would have successfully defended their league title if the team had not been forced to cope with a depleted squad caused by fitness problems during the season.<\/p>\n
In his view, the decline in competitiveness over the latter stages of the campaign was tied to extended absences for several important figures, including Scott McTominay, Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku and captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo, who all spent lengthy spells out of action.<\/p>\n
\u201cWithout the injuries, we would have been the champions,\u201d De Laurentiis said.<\/p>\n
The president\u2019s comments sparked an immediate reply from Conte, who was seated alongside him during the same briefing and urged that Inter\u2019s accomplishments should be given proper recognition.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat probably would not have happened,\u201d Conte said. \u201cInter\u2019s merits need to be recognised.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry, but I don\u2019t like clinging to these things. We have to acknowledge others\u2019 victories and show respect. If we want respect, we have to give it. Inter deserved to win the league, with injuries or not.\u201d<\/p>\n
De Laurentiis did not identify specific candidates to take over from Conte. However, he suggested that players returning to full fitness could make a difference and help the club respond positively under a new leadership approach.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Napoli have moved quickly to confirm the exit of coach Antonio Conte, issuing a short four-word message less than a day after the Italian manager revealed he would step away in a tense press gathering that saw him exchange heated words with club president Aurelio De Laurentiis. \u201cThanks for everything, coach,\u201d Napoli posted on their […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"Napoli Confirm Conte Exit After De Laurentiis Spat","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Napoli confirm Antonio Conte\u2019s exit after a tense spat with Aurelio De Laurentiis, ending the coach\u2019s stint in a quick, four-word ","mma_seo_breadcrumb_text":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_url":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_hide_ui":"","mma_seo_breadcrumb_labels":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1016","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","","category-sports"],"yoast_head":"\n