Italy Serie A champions Napoli have announced the appointment of Rudi Garcia - former coach of Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr - to replace Luciano Spalletti.
"President Aurelio De Laurentiis is delighted to announce that Garcia will be the new coach of Napoli. We send Garcia our warmest welcome and best wishes," the announcement said on the evening of June 15, but did not disclose the term or any terms of the contract.
The French coach later wrote on Twitter : "It was an honour to join the Napoli project and a pleasure to return to Italy. More than ever, I have the motivation and ambition to continue to progress with the Italian champions."
Rudi Garcia will take over Napoli from this summer. Photo: EPA
Also on Twitter , President De Laurentiis said he had been negotiating and understanding Garcia's plans to build the club over the past 10 days, and sent his sincere welcome and best wishes to Napoli's new signing.
In May, De Laurentiis said he was looking for a coach who would use a 4-3-3 formation to succeed Spalletti's title-winning side. Luis Enrique was linked with a move to Napoli, but was soon ruled out by De Laurentiis. He also ruled out the possibility of signing Antonio Conte - who is a free agent after leaving Tottenham - because the Italian coach prefers a back three.
On the morning of June 15, Italian and French media reported that Christophe Galtier was the leading candidate to become Napoli coach. Although not officially announced, the French coach was fired by PSG after a disappointing season. They were soon eliminated from the Champions League round of 16, the French Cup round of 16 and won Ligue 1 by one point over runner-up Lens.
By the evening of the same day, Napoli announced that they had chosen Garcia. He had worked in Serie A when he led Roma from 2013-2015, winning 61, drawing 34 and losing 23 in 118 games. Garcia was fired in January 2016, and was replaced by Spalletti himself. Things were reversed this time, although Spalletti was not fired but terminated a year early due to a conflict with president De Laurentiis.
Garcia (left) at Ronaldo's unveiling at Al Nassr in January. Photo: Reuters
After leaving Roma, Garcia took charge of Marseille, Lyon and Ronaldo's Al Nassr. He led the Saudi Arabian club from June 29, 2022, through 26 matches, winning 18, drawing five, losing three, winning rate 69%. In April 2023, the 59-year-old coach lost his job when Al Nassr was eliminated in the semi-finals of the National Super Cup and lost the top spot in the Saudi Pro League to Al Ittihad.
Hong Duy
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