Antonio Conte has Napoli back on top. The Italian tactician has worked wonders in just a few months.
Napoli finished 10th in Serie A last season. They now lead the league after 12 games in 2024/25. Easybet has odds of 3.99 for Napoli to win Serie A.
Turning Napoli Around
Napoli endured a nightmare 2023/24 season. Rudi Garcia, Walter Mazzarri, and Francesco Calzona all failed to steady the ship. Conte stepped in during the summer. He immediately demanded change.
When Napoli lost 3-0 to Verona (2995.54) in Conte’s first Serie A game in charge, he realised the scale of the problem.
“Anyone who thinks it was just bad luck is far from reality. I expected a better situation, and positive surprises, which is why when I spoke at the beginning I said, even after such a negative year we must not throw everything away but let’s understand if there are also positive things,” Conte told Sky Sport Italia.
“I expected positive surprises, but I had a hard time finding any. But you arrive and there are nine, ten, exits. We are not saying that we are at year zero but at year very close to zero. It doesn’t scare me but it’s better to be clear, when there is reality and clarity you know where to go and what problems to face.”
By the end of the transfer window, Napoli had a squad more tailored to Conte’s liking. Billy Gilmour and Scott McTominay added resilience in midfield. Romelu Lukaku was brought in to lead the line as he had for Conte at Inter (1.82). Meanwhile, Victor Osimhen was loaned out to Galatasaray.
Napoli soon shot to the top of the league table.
How Does Conte Keep Succeeding?
Unafraid to tactically innovate and intense in his methods, Conte usually ruffles feathers as soon as he arrives at a club.
This was seen most evidently at Chelsea in 2016. The Blues had finished 10th in the 2015/16 Premier League before Conte took charge and were not expected to immediately challenge for the title. However, Conte had them soaring clear of their rivals before the middle of the season arrived. He broke conventional wisdom that Premier League teams could not play with a back three, succeeding with Marcos Alonso and Victor Moses as wing-backs.
Chelsea players who featured under Conte, such as John Terry, have praised the intensity of training. Terry said that under the Italian, he was the fittest he had been.
The signs of this are clear at Napoli, but he has updated his preferred formation and tactics yet again. In terms of his intensity, Conte never changes, but as far as his tactics go, there is arguably no head coach in the modern game better at moving with the times.
