Napoli sack Walter Mazzarri, Francesco Calzona to take over
It’s been a rough season for Napoli fans. Their team, the defending champions, is floundering in ninth place and a whopping 27 points behind Inter Milan. No surprise then that Walter Mazzarri got the boot after the fans showed their displeasure following the Genoa draw.
Taking over? Francesco Calzona. He’ll be in charge for the rest of the season while still coaching the Slovakia national team. Not a bad gig!
Calzona knows the team, having worked with Napoli before under Luciano Spalletti. Remember when Spalletti finally broke that Scudetto drought? Good times.
Napoli’s rollercoaster season isn’t over yet either. They face Barcelona in that huge Champions League match this Wednesday. Talk about being thrown right into the fire!
What about the boss?
Club president Aurelio De Laurentiis admits it was ‘painful’ to sack Walter Mazzarri, but fans ‘need something more’ and Francesco Calzona already ‘knows 80% of the squad.’
“Walter Mazzarri is a friend of the De Laurentiis family and, above all, he’s a friend of Napoli,” De Laurentiis told Sky Sport Italia on Monday night.
“It’s always painful to sack a friend and I have thanked him. He was available to come here when we were struggling, but we must consider that Napoli and Napoli fans always need something more, which we are trying to give them with Calzona.”
Why did he hire him?
“He worked with Sarri and Spalletti and already knows 80% of our players,” ADL replied.
“Let’s welcome Calzona and try to help him with no disputes. Preparing for a tough game in 24 hours will be very difficult.
“He will come here with all his assistants tomorrow morning [Tuesday] and we’ll chat for a long time. Then we’ll go to Castel Volturno where I will introduce him to the team even if he knows many players.”
Want to see Calzona in action? You can grab tickets to that Barcelona showdown – it’s sure to be dramatic!
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