{"id":691800,"date":"2026-05-25T02:46:15","date_gmt":"2026-05-25T02:46:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/691800\/"},"modified":"2026-05-25T02:46:15","modified_gmt":"2026-05-25T02:46:15","slug":"conte-calls-time-on-napoli-amid-too-much-poison-como-into-champions-league-european-club-football","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/691800\/","title":{"rendered":"Conte calls time on Napoli amid \u2018too much poison\u2019; Como into Champions League | European club football"},"content":{"rendered":"

Antonio Conte announced his departure as Napoli head coach on Sunday after guiding the team to a 1-0 home victory over Udinese in their final match of the Serie A<\/a> season.<\/p>\n

The 56-year-old confirmed the decision at a press conference alongside the Napoli<\/a> president, Aurelio De Laurentiis, after the match. Having joined the club in July 2024, he won the league title in his debut campaign. Conte\u2019s final match was settled by a 23rd-minute goal from striker Rasmus H\u00f8jlund, securing a second-place finish in the league table for the hosts behind Inter.<\/p>\n

The former Italy and Chelsea manager revealed he had initiated the exit talks based on his relationship with the club\u2019s owner. \u201cI rang the chairman a month ago \u2026 and told him: \u2018Given the friendship we share, I feel that my time here is coming to an end.\u2019 The decision was mine,\u201d Conte told reporters. \u201cI\u2019ve never been one for mediocre seasons, and I never will be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Reflecting on the turning point of his decision following a loss to Bologna this month, Conte cited friction over January signings and internal squad dynamics. \u201cI saw situations there that I did not like,\u201d Conte said. \u201cCertainly some new signings arrived in January while the old group and I were in very difficult dynamics. There came a moment when it was right to speak out and take responsibility.<\/p>\n

\u201cI failed at one thing in Naples: I was unable to bring everyone together,\u201d he added. \u201cI saw too much poison, too much malice. The moment you can no longer do things with ease is a step backwards for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Conte is a frontrunner to take over as Italy manager, local media reported. \u201cThere is satisfaction, honour and prestige in what I achieved coaching Naples. I thank De Laurentiis for giving me this opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Como qualified for the Champions League for the first time in their history, the lakeside club being joined by Roma in the top four as giants Milan and Juventus missed out on an eventful final day marred by fan violence.<\/p>\n

Como\u2019s player celebrates with Cesc F\u00e0bregas after booking their ticket to the Champions League. Photograph: Alberto Mariani\/LaPresse\/Shutterstock<\/p>\n

Como\u2019s 4-1 win at Cremonese, who drop down to Serie B, and Milan falling to a shock 2-1 home defeat to Cagliari was enough for Cesc F\u00e0bregas\u2019s side to cap their incredible rise from the lower leagues to Europe\u2019s top table. Como finish the season fourth, two points behind Roma, whose 2-0 win at already-relegated Verona ensured third place and an end to their long absence from the Champions League.<\/p>\n

Juventus\u2019 match at Torino kicked off over an hour late for \u201cpublic safety\u201d after one of the Turin giants\u2019 fans was admitted to hospital following pre-match clashes with rival supporters. The match eventually finished 2-2 with Juve ending the season sixth and qualifying for the Europa League.<\/p>\n

In La Liga, Villarreal claimed third place with an emphatic 5-1 win over Atl\u00e9tico Madrid, who finished fourth, in the final match of the Spanish season. It was Marcelino Garc\u00eda Toral\u2019s last in charge of the Yellow Submarine, and he guided them to a comfortable victory against an uninterested Atl\u00e9tico side. Finishing third is Villarreal\u2019s highest placement in La Liga for 13 years.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Antonio Conte announced his departure as Napoli head coach on Sunday after guiding the team to a 1-0…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":691801,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[440],"tags":[49,48,561,82],"class_list":["post-691800","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-soccer","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-soccer","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/691800","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=691800"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/691800\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/691801"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=691800"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=691800"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=691800"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}