Scudetto to Napoli, the “miracle of Saint Anthony”

Three scudetti at the helm of three different teams. It had never happened in Italy, before Antonio Conte. The Napoli coach is a sort of King Midas of football, everything he touches turns to gold. His list of achievements, moreover, says a lot about the ability of the Lecce native to spend very little time getting to know an environment and a team perfectly, to intervene with the right timing and methods to transform an ugly duckling into a swan and, as he said on the spur of the moment, «have the pride of entering the history of Naples . I needed this challenge and now we have to enjoy the victory, after a very tough year».

Napoli had finished last season in tenth place, out of all European competitions, after the disaster of the three coaches - Garcia, Mazzarri and Calzona - who had taken turns without straightening out the fortunes of a team that played with the Scudetto on their shirts. At the beginning of June 2024, here comes the dramatic turn of events prepared with a long courtship and staged by Aurelio De Laurentiis: the hiring of Conte, returning from a sabbatical year. It was known that he was a winner from the titles won in Italy and Europe but that with him at the helm - he had only promised to bring Napoli back to Europe, perhaps entering through the main door of the Champions League - the fourth Scudetto could immediately arrive, the second of the De Laurentiis era, there were very few who thought so, including, probably, the president himself. And that's how it went, despite the difficulties encountered in the summer market (the problem linked to the failed sale of Osimhen, who ended up on loan at the last minute to Galatasaray, the last-minute arrivals of McTominay, Gilmour and Lukaku) and despite the disappointment of the winter market, for which Conte had asked for reinforcements and instead was forced to suffer the departure of Kvaratskhelia, sold to Paris Saint Germain, due to obvious environmental incompatibility.

But Conte, as usual, managed to keep the bar steady. He loaded the squad he had at his disposal with work and responsibility, which he deemed insufficient, he suffered and toiled without almost ever complaining and in the end he managed to achieve what he himself has repeatedly defined, almost like a mantra, the "miracle" of winning the Scudetto. Napoli fans adore him.

What we like about this coach is his clarity, his way of always saying what he thinks. When the limited squad, due to a series of injuries, became more evident, he did not fail to direct a jab at the president, immediately before the delicate away match in Monza and that narrow 1-0 victory which was, however, a decisive turning point. Then came other victories, other unexpected setbacks, but in the end the miracle happened .

As soon as the excitement of the triumph has passed, however, the chickens will come home to roost. What will Conte decide to do? Will he resign, not honoring the three-year contract signed in June? Will he continue at Naples but only after receiving assurances from De Laurentiis about the financial commitment to allow him to face the next demanding season with serenity? Will he move to Juve to try to revive the fortunes of the Bianconeri after having "miraculously" performed Napoli? Or will Milan secure his services? Everything is up in the air, nothing has been decided yet and it is unlikely that it will be before the celebratory parade, scheduled for Monday afternoon.