ANTONIO CONTE UNDER PRESSURE JUST MINUTES AFTER SECURING SERIE A TITLE WITH NAPOLI AS PRESIDENT SENDS BOSS WARNING AMID WILD STREET CELEBRATIONS

Antonio Conte has become the first man to win the Italian title with three different teams

• Napoli win Scudetto for the fourth time after pipping Inter Milan on the final day

• Antonio wins Serie A Coach of the Year but that doesn't impress his president!

Antonio Conte had barely time to bask in winning the Serie A title with Napoli before he was put in his place by club president Aurelio De Laurentiis.

The former Chelsea and Tottenham manager became the first man to win the Italian title with three different teams as his side saw off Cagliari 2-0 with goals from Scott McTominay and Romelu Lukaku on the final day. 

The result sees Napoli top Serie A by a point after second-place Inter Milan matched their result at Como. 

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis is already thinking ahead to next season's targets

Napoli's fourth ever title — and their second in three years  — prompted wild celebrations on the streets of the southern Italian city as smoke bombs, fireworks, and passionate chants filled the air.

The achievement saw Conte crowned as Serie A Coach of the Year but that did not spare him from being immediately put under pressure by his boss who is already starting to think about next season.

Napoli did not play in Europe this season, a consequence of last year's miserable title defence which saw them finish 10th.  

Le scene dei festeggiamenti per la vittoria del campionato del Napoli, stanno facendo il giro del mondo, per la gioia dei milioni di tifosi emigrati. #NapoliCagliari#Napoli #Scudetto #CampioneDItalia #SerieA pic.twitter.com/UMwNKR0WZU

— Marco Ferraglioni (@MFerraglioni) May 23, 2025

And De Laurentiis is hungry for the Neapolitans to get their hands on a first European trophy since the Diego Maradona-inspired UEFA Cup triumph in 1989. 

Scott McTominay puts up four fingers to mark the number of titles won by the Neapolitans

'Never say never,' the 75-year-old told DAZN when asked if Conte was staying.

'Coaches have their own character that must be respected and in my view you should never oblige them under iron-clad contracts. Napoli is Napoli, it deserves respect. If he wants to put himself at the disposal of the club the way he has done this season, then we say welcome, we are ready to follow him like a great leader.

'Next year, I would be very pleased if he made his mark in the Champions League, which since they modified the format has become even more important.'

Napoli supporters party late into the night on the streets of the southern Italian city

Although that may seem a rather churlish way to speak about your league-winning manager to the backdrop of raucous Neapolitan celebration, De Laurentiis did temper those comments with some warm words about Conte. 

'It was not easy, but when I met Conte in the Maldives and many years ago we went swimming together, I was struck by his mentality,' De Laurentiis said.

'I approached him in November 2023 and asked him to come straight away, but very professionally, he said he didn’t build that team, so it was best to wait until June so then we could do something really special together.'

McTominay sent Napoli toward their title triumph on Friday night by scoring a brilliant opening goal. The Scot signed from Man United last summer for £25million and has been a revelation in southern Italy, winning the Serie A Player of the Year award.

Back in Manchester, United boss Ruben Amorim was no doubt looking on with interest just 48 hours after his side were beaten 1-0 by Tottenham in the Europa League final. Across the city, Kevin de Bruyne may also have taken note. 

It's quite the turnaround after the Partenopei finished 10th during last season's title defence

The Belgian legend will leave Man City this summer when his contract expires after a decade at the Etihad Stadium in which he has scored 108 goals and won 19 trophies, including the Champions League.

Napoli has been touted as a possible location for the 33-year-old but when De Laurentiis was asked if a move was on the cards, he was more circumspect with his words. 

'Let us not ask indiscreet questions,' he said.

'We are working to create an even stronger and more competitive squad. We have wonderful players right now and will add more of the highest level.'

- MailOnline Sport

NAPOLI SURVIVE SERIE A CLASH AGAINST ATALANTA WITH 3-2 WIN

 

ANKARA

Napoli survived an Italian Serie A week 21 clash against Atalanta with a 3-2 win Saturday.

Italian forward Mateo Retegui scored the first goal for the hosts in the 16th minute at Atalanta's Gewiss Stadium.

Italian winger Matteo Politano responded in kind in the 27th minute.

Scottish midfielder Scott McTominay brought the lead to Napoli in the 40th minute.

Atalanta's Nigerian attacker Ademola Lookman equalized in the 55th minute.

Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku tallied the winning goal for Napoli in the 78th minute.

Napoli cemented their top seat with 50 points, while Atalanta are in the third spot with 43 points.

- Selcuk Bugra Gokalp

MAN UNITED WON'T OVERPAY, RISK TRANSFER 'SETBACK' - CEO

Manchester United CEO Omar Berrada has said the club will not be held to ransom in their future transfer dealings because a bad deal can "set you back."

In the past, United have been accused of over-paying for players, both in terms of transfer fees and wages.

The first summer window under the new leadership team -- of which Berrada is part -- saw United spend close to £200 million ($221m) on five new players.

Berrada said the club were "disciplined" with the fees paid for new players while also highlighting the dangers of getting deals wrong

"We were able to do it [the summer window] in a financially sustainable way," Berrada said.

"We were quite disciplined about the valuations we were giving to the players who were going to come in. We stuck to those valuations. I think [sporting director] Dan [Ashworth] and the team did a fantastic job in the negotiations process.

"The reason I mention that is if you make a mistake and if you overspend or get a player who can cost you too much, it can set you back. Which is why you need to be able to take those decisions and make the right ones consistently over time to be in a position to win consistently."

As well as five new players, United also sanctioned the departures of a number of first-team squad members including Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Scott McTominay.

Sources have told ESPN that some within the club had reservations about letting McTominay leave for Napoli. Ashworth, though, said it was part of his job to make tough decisions.

"You have to be quite brave and make decisions that maybe you don't want to make," he said.

"But you can't have a bloated squad, and you're also dealing with players that ultimately want to play football. So you want to make sure that the squad is lean, but you have enough depth.

"The schedule, especially with the new Europa League format, is pretty punishing. So we want to make sure we've got enough depth that we don't carry a bloated squad and we're able to keep the players with the motivation and thought that they've got a chance of playing. If you run with too big a squad, it can cause problems. So you have to sometimes make some brave decisions on that."

Jadon Sancho was another senior player allowed to leave after he made the move to Chelsea, initially on loan, on deadline day.

It came almost a year after Sancho's public fall-out with Erik ten Hag but Ashworth insists the 24-year-old has not been "kicked out" of Old Trafford.

"I think with any player, whether it's Jadon, whether it's Scott or whether it's Aaron, if there's a preference that they would like to move and go to a new club and it's right for them and it's right for us, then you have to explore it," Ashworth said.

"We felt we had enough depth in that particular position to be able to cover it, we've got four really good wide players, Jadon was a fifth, and it just enabled us to make that decision that if it was good for him and good for us it was something we were willing to consider.

"It was a decision that we made. If it's right for Jadon and it's right for us to move on.

"He wanted to explore the opportunity at Chelsea, like Scott wanted to explore the opportunity at Napoli, like Aaron Wanted to explore the opportunity at West Ham. We're not in a position where we're kicking players out of the club."

- Rob Dawson, Correspondent

CHELSEA SET TO RIVAL JUVENTUS FOR JADON SANCHO DEAL - SOURCE

Jadon Sancho has not featured for Manchester United in the Premier League this season. Adam Davy/PA Images via Getty Images

Chelsea are considering rivalling Juventus for the signing of Jadon Sancho, a source has told ESPN.

Manchester United are willing to let the forward leave before Friday's transfer deadline. Juventus have held talks with United, but so far an agreement has not been reached.

Sancho, according to a source, is one of a number of options being considered by Chelsea in the last week of the window.

The 24-year-old is yet to feature for United so far this season after being omitted from the squad for games against Fulham and Brighton.

He has been reintegrated at Old Trafford this summer after spending the second half of last season on loan at Borussia Dortmund.

Sancho came on as a late substitute in the Community Shield defeat to Manchester City, but he hasn't played a competitive game for United for a year following his public fall-out with manager Erik ten Hag in August 2023.

United would prefer to secure a permanent move for Sancho but, so far, clubs have been unwilling to match their valuation of around £40 million ($52.8m).

Sancho's wages of more than £300k per week are also a stumbling block.

He has two years left on the contract he signed when he arrived from Dortmund in a £73 million deal in 2021.

United have not ruled out agreeing to an initial loan deal for Sancho, as long as there's an option or obligation to make the move permanent at the end of the campaign.

Meanwhile, Scott McTominay is in talks with Napoli after United agreed a £25m fee with the Italian side on Sunday.

Should the midfielder decide to join Antonio Conte's team, sources have told ESPN it will give United greater flexibility in their negotiations to bring in Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Manuel Ugarte.

PSG have been holding out for a fee of around £50m for the Uruguay international to recoup the money spent to sign him from Sporting last summer.

- Rob Dawson, Correspondent

SCOTT MCTOMINAY SCORES WHEN NEEDED | POINTS WON BY SUBSTITUTES' GOALS