“Violation of ethics”: UEFA provision against De Laurentiis

It’s becoming a nightmare season, increasingly bitter and disappointing. Napoli’s present resembles a black hole in which the future also risks being swallowed up, after the double exit from the Champions League and the Club World Cup. The surrender against Barcelona is in fact a severe setback for the plans of Aurelio De Laurentiis, which on the night of Montjuic saw around sixty million suddenly disappear. The post-scudetto was supposed to be the beginning of the new era and instead turned into a failure for the president: zero titles and the fall to seventh place in the championship.

The only foothold for the group of Francesco Calzona the last 10 Serie A matches remain: as many finals to save a place in the Europe that counts. But it won’t be easy to turn the page and Sunday’s trip to San Siro promises to be melancholy, where Di Lorenzo & C will peel off the tricolor from their shirts well in advance to sell it to Inter.

Just a year ago, Napoli was flying towards winning their third scudetto, which they won shortly thereafter with 5 matchdays to spare and 16 points ahead. How it was possible to squander such a treasure is known only to De Laurentiis, who paid for the hangover of the triumph and made one mistake after another: first by letting go – even though they were both under contract – Luciano Spalletti e Cristiano Giuntoli, then making mistakes in the choice of coaches, the purchases on the transfer market and the renewal strategies.

The president had the chance to open a cycle and instead convinced himself that he was the only irreplaceable one, sinning of presumption. The results have in fact demonstrated the opposite and the growing nervousness of the Italian number one is making the team’s path more complicated, despite Calzona’s reconstruction.

UEFA has opened a disciplinary measure pursuant to article 55 against the president, who risks disqualification and fine, after the attack on the Sky cameraman for “violation of the basic rules of decent conduct”. The refereeing errors against Barcelona have instead convinced the fans that they are victims of an international conspiracy, in the wake of the president’s announcement that he wants to take FIFA to court to contest the exclusion from the Club World Cup in favor of Juventus.

The players will therefore also have to isolate themselves from the legal battles that are looming for De Laurentiis – the deal is also at stake Osimhen – avoiding them turning into distractions or alibis. The team already has too many problems on the pitch: from the fragility of the defense (8 games in a row with at least one goal conceded) to the short blanket in midfield, with Anguissa tired for the Africa Cup of Nations, Zielinski on the fringes of the squad and Traoré in uncertain conditions .

The attacking stars, VO9 and, also disappointed in Barcelona Kvaratskhelia. The former already knows he will leave at the end of the year and the latter has yet to renew his contract. It is in these difficult conditions that the Azzurri will be forced to attempt a comeback in the championship, chasing qualification for the Champions League next season.

The black hole risks swallowing everyone, given that without Europe, downsizing would be essential. Finally, the question of the bench is open to us, with the polls already underway for the choice of the new coach. Calzona flew to Slovakia yesterday for his commitments as coach and was optimistic. «I don’t even know what I’ll do tomorrow morning.

I certainly have a contract with the Federation and we will always make every decision together. In two months, six or a year, if I receive an offer, we will evaluate what to do. Napoli is a strong team and I have the habit of becoming fond of the players I coach, especially if they are good guys even off the pitch.” But the future of the bench will only depend on the results.