Antonio Conte's Lonely Path to the Summit of Vesuvius

Accepting the offer from Napoli last summer was a significant decision for Antonio Conte. He left behind the hustle and bustle of the major cities in northern Italy where he had achieved success with Juventus and Inter Milan. Moreover, none of his close associates accompanied him in Naples.

Conte won his first trophy with Juventus, a club he is well-known for having captained during his playing days. The tactician, born in Lecce, was willing to defect to Inter, Juventus' eternal rival, to fulfill the request of his friend, Beppe Marotta, whom he became acquainted with during his coaching tenure at Juventus from 2011 to 2014.

The persuasion of a close friend was also what made Conte willing to join Tottenham Hotspur in the middle of the season. Fabio Paratici, the former Sporting Director of Spurs, was the figure who convinced Conte to experience the intense competition in the Premier League, even though it ended without a trophy.

When he arrived in Naples, Conte's illustrious reputation as a title-winning coach seemed to have faded. The key stars of Napoli rebelled and chose to leave the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in different ways.

Victor Osimhen, Napoli's best striker with 76 goals in 133 matches, chose to move to Galatasaray. Then, Kvicha Kvaratskhelia, one of the new phenomena in the Italian League, also decided to leave Napoli for Paris Saint-Germain in the winter, early 2025. Both are vital figures for the "Little Donkey" when they won the 2022-2023 scudetto.

However, Conte received "assistance" from Romelu Lukaku, the striker who accompanied him at Inter Milan. Under Conte, Lukaku rediscovered his sharpness with a total contribution of 24 goals, consisting of 14 goals and 10 assists.

The Belgian striker scored Napoli's second goal against Cagliari in the final match and the final that determined the 2024-2025 Italian League champion, Saturday (24/5/2025) early morning WIB, at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium. No doubt, Lukaku played a big role in Napoli's fourth scudetto.

However, for the player who is familiarly called "Big Rom", he is only a small part of Napoli's scudetto success this season. Despite producing goals and assists that cannot be matched by other players, Lukaku emphasized that he is only doing his job as a forward.

"All the players have a part to play in this title. We think only about the team and try to give our best," Lukaku, who has 78 goals and 27 assists in 133 games under Conte, told DAZN.

Conte became only the third coach to win five scudettos, equalling the achievements of his two former Juve coaches, Fabio Capello and Marcelo Lippi.

Although he is still behind Giovanni Trapattoni (7 scudettos) and Massimiliano Allegri (6) in the trophy collection, Conte is the first tactician to win the Italian League with three different clubs.

In the success of the three teams that hate each other, Conte has a common thread. He demands that every individual in his squad show troppo alto energy, aka very high. Despite their spirited performance, Napoli are the most fair play team in the Italian League this season because they received the fewest yellow cards and no red cards.

On the other hand, Conte always prioritizes defense above all else. This is typical of coaches from Italy. Napoli has conceded only 27 goals in 34 games this season. This is the best defensive record during the 2024-2025 competition campaign.

The strengthening of the defense was initiated by Conte by bringing in center-back Alessandro Buongiorno from Torino. He also recruited defensive midfielder Billy Gilmour from Brighton & Hove Albion.

Both are like complements of Conte's game plan particles. Boungiorno forms a solid center-back duo with Amir Rrahmani. Meanwhile, Gilmour is formed into a deep-lying playmaker at the heart of the Little Donkey's game.

The presence of Gilmour allows Frank Anguissa and Scott McTominay to assist the attack more freely. Gilmour also demonstrates a role comparable to that of a Napoli player. He is capable of fulfilling the substitute role effectively when Stanislav Lobotka suffers an injury at the end of this season.

Mathias Olivera also alternated with Buongiorno, who is experiencing fitness issues this May. Juan Jesus and Rafa Marin are the backup center-backs who performed well when given the opportunity to play.

Kvaratskhelia's departure does not bother Conte. He has full confidence in the players he already has, such as David Neres and Giacomo Raspadori.

"Opening the season with a 0-0 draw against Modena in the Coppa Italia and losing 0-3 to Verona in Serie A, then celebrating the scudetto, it's incredible," Conte was quoted as saying by Corrire dello Sport.

"I reiterate, winning the championship is not an easy situation in Italy. Because we are not in a club that systematically plays to win titles from the beginning of the season," he added.

Arrigo Sacchi, the legendary Italian coach, took his hat off to Conte's success in giving Napoli the scudetto. According to Sacchi, Conte was able to form a team filled with players with the same fighting will, hard work, and desire to win.

"At Napoli, he (Conte) was able to build a team from the ruins of last season's failure, reassuring the team of their strength. I am sure that without Conte this title would not have been won by Napoli," Sacchi told La Gazetta dello Sport.

Conte revived Napoli's squad after it was torn apart by defeat in the battle to defend the scudetto last season. He fought in silence in unfamiliar surroundings until he finally stood tall on the summit of Mount Vesuvius, Naples' highest point.