Fabio Paratici has been put forward as an ideal name for Napoli, just four months after bringing his time at Tottenham Hotspur to an end.
Calcio Napoli 24 report on comments from journalist Massimiliano Gallo, in Il Napolista, regarding the former Tottenham director of football.
Napoli changes = Tottenham reunion
Napoli could face a busy summer of change as Roma are showing serious interest in their current sporting director Giovanni Manna. While there is no hint he’s ready to jump ship yet, questions are being asked about who would replace him.
For Gallo, the answer is a simple one. Go and get Fabio Paratici, the man he thinks is the best on the market.
“We know that De Laurentiis is very close to Manna; he considers him his discovery,” he said.
“He always speaks highly of him. There’s no reason to separate, at least from the president’s point of view.
“If he were to accept Roma’s advances, then De Laurentiis should waste no time and go and get the best player on the market.”
Antonio Conte relationship
Indeed, he thinks there is a perfect reason beyond the transfer market too. Hiring Paratici would offer comfort and security to manager Antonio Conte.
“Paratici has a profound knowledge of football,” he added.
“He would be the perfect man for Napoli. He would be the sporting director Napoli has never had.
“Paratici is someone who knows a thing or two; he’s not just a sporting director for gourmet restaurants; he knows how to buy and sell at any price. And he would also be a point of reference for Antonio Conte at the club. The manager would feel safe.”
Mutual esteem
It would certainly be an interesting move for the former Tottenham director, who returned to Italy in January to lead Fiorentina.
That was presented as a long-term project but with safety nearly secured, would he be tempted to take a stab at another big job?
A reunion with Conte certainly makes sense. The pair worked together between 2011 and 2014 an then again at Tottenham. Conte even admitted in 2021 that there is ‘great mutual esteem’ between the pair. He even “we speak the same language and I’m not referring only to Italian”.
That suggests that, five years later, he’d be open to working with the former Tottenham director again if given the chance. Whether Napoli listen to Gallo’s suggestion, remains to be seen.