De Laurentiis aims dig at Spalletti: coaches are just employees

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis used an award ceremony in Rome to warn coaches that they remain employees, and pointed the remark at Luciano Spalletti, who now manages Juventus.

"Don't make me talk about Spalletti… Coaches must understand that they are collaborators called to direct the orchestra formed of the players, but they remain just employees," he said. "At times, they tend to forget that. Am I being clear?" By all accounts he grimaced when reporters raised the name.

Spalletti left Napoli after finishing second in 2023, then pushed to leave and took the national team job a few weeks later. The split was bitter. The remark could also be read as a message to Antonio Conte and the current head coach, Max Allegri, who followed Spalletti at the club. Allegri was unveiled on 14 July.

De Laurentiis also spoke about a new stadium, separate from the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, and about the squad he would like to build.

«I would want to have a team made up only young players,».

He also defended his record: two Scudetto titles and five cups in 22 years, the most consecutive European seasons of any side, and navigated Calciopoli without cheating, which he called essential.

Spalletti's Juventus played at Sassuolo on 13 September. The message is clear: Allegri’s job is under scrutiny.