Antonio Conte open to Italy job, De Laurentiis says release could happen | OneFootball

Antonio Conte left the door open to the vacant Italy job after Napoli beat AC Milan 1-0 on Monday, the post has been open since Gennaro Gattuso left on Friday 3 April.

"If Conte asked me to release him to become national coach again, I think I would say yes. But since he is very intelligent, until there is a serious interlocutor, and so far there is not one, I think he will not picture himself at the head of a completely disorganised entity," said Aurelio De Laurentiis in an interview with Calcionapoli24.

The win moved Napoli second in Serie A, seven points behind Inter. Conte said at his news conference: "It is normal that my name appears on the list of candidates for the Nazionale. If I were federation president, I would consider my name."

He noted he had already coached the Nazionale from 2014 to 2016, adding that his contract means he will meet De Laurentiis at the end of the season before any decision. The 56-year-old is tied to Napoli until June 2027 and nearly left last summer amid disagreements with the president.

Italy are in crisis after a 1-1 draw after extra time and a 1-4 penalty shootout defeat to Bosnia and Herzegovina, which confirmed a third successive World Cup missed.

The next head coach, the third since August 2023 after Luciano Spalletti and Gennaro Gattuso, will not be appointed before June, with the federation currently without a president following Gabriele Gravina’s resignation. His successor is due to be elected on 22 June at an extraordinary assembly in Rome.

Source: L'Équipe