Napoli's Desire to Defend the Italian League Throne

NAPOLI, WEDNESDAY — Entering their second season under Antonio Conte, Napoli continues to improve their squad. Their goal is to defend their Scudetto title in the 2025-2026 season. Furthermore, Conte also wants to end the club's seemingly lost momentum when it comes to Champions League football.

Among the giant teams of Serie A in Italy, Napoli deserves to be mentioned as the most serious in making improvements. The championship title in Italy last season did not make "The Little Donkey" complacent. Moreover, Napoli President Aurelio De Laurentiis has already promised Conte to fulfill his wishes in this transfer market.

That promise is what made Conte committed to continuing his tenure at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium, an icon of the city of Naples. Previously, Conte was surrounded by rumors of leaving Napoli after clinching the Serie A trophy for the 2024-2025 season.

All lines have been strengthened by Napoli with the arrival of new players. Starting from the goalkeeper position by recruiting Serbian national team goalkeeper, Vanja Milinkovic-Savic, from Torino. Two new center-backs have also joined Conte's squad, namely Sam Beukema from Bologna and Luca Marianucci from Empoli.

In the heart of the game sector, Napoli managed to entice Kevin De Bruyne to join on a free transfer from Manchester City. De Bruyne's skills and leadership are highly relied upon by Conte to navigate the long season ahead. The presence of the Belgian-born player is one of the reasons Conte is very enthusiastic about welcoming the 2025-2026 preseason.

De Bruyne's partnership with Ballon d'Or contender Scott McTominay certainly makes Napoli one of the best midfield teams in Europe today. The chemistry that has developed between De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku can also thrill any Napoli opponent.

"Little Donkey" also brought in two wingers, Noa Lang (PSV Eindhoven) and Emanuele Rao (SPAL). The depth of the central attacking sector is further strengthened by the tall striker, Lorenzo Lucca, who was recruited from Udinese. The two-meter tall forward scored 12 goals in the Italian League last season.

When all the best players had gathered, Napoli recorded two consecutive victories against Girona and Sorrento in friendly matches in early August. This became their capital ahead of the new season, facing the promoted team that holds the title of Serie B Italy 2024-2025 champion, Sassuolo.

Conte admitted that the Serie A title is his primary goal for the 2025-2026 season. Napoli have not won the Scudetto in the club's history in the last two seasons.

It is not surprising that Conte, who has experienced championship victories in Italy with Juventus, Inter Milan, and Napoli, reminds us that Napoli's poor performance in the 2023-2024 season, following their championship in the previous season, should serve as a lesson.

"Whoever has the Scudetto badge on their jersey is the favorite. We can't afford to be embarrassed, let alone be overshadowed by fear. We can't forget what happened two seasons ago. In fact, that experience should be a lesson because we already know defending the title will be very challenging," said Conte.

Meanwhile, the three teams with the most Serie A titles, namely Juventus, Inter Milan, and AC Milan, are in the process of reincarnating a winning culture. This is marked by entrusting coaches who understand the importance of the club's proud jersey.

Juve and Inter are managed by their former defenders. Igor Tudor was permanently appointed by Juve after replacing Thiago Motta last March, while Inter replaced Simone Inzaghi with Cristian Chivu, who saved Parma from the threat of relegation last season.

Tudor won two Serie A titles while playing for Juve from 1998 to 2007. His mission to end the "Old Lady"'s five-season Scudetto drought is no easy feat.

Despite having brought in Joao Mario and Jonathan David, Juventus's activity in the transfer market is still far from over. After negotiating with Paris Saint-Germain for Randal Kolo Muani, the strength of the midfield aims to be bolstered by attempting to recruit Morten Hjulmand from Sporting Lisbon.

Similar to Juve, Inter, along with Chivu, is in the process of restructuring. Ange-Yoan Bonny, Luis Henrique, and Petar Sucic are the trio of early signings by the Romanian tactician. Although he inherited a squad with the highest market value in Italy (718.3 million euros), Chivu is faced with the demand for squad regeneration at Inter.

This is because "I Nerazzurri" has the oldest player composition in the Italian League for the 2025-2026 season. The average age of the Inter squad is 28.4 years. Chivu is also troubled by a minimal preparation period.

"We must be prepared and remain a competitive team. It is not easy to always perform at the top level, but from a character standpoint, all players have shown effort to improve themselves. I am confident that we will be ready to welcome the first match of the league," said Chivu to Inter TV.

AC Milan is experiencing a rekindling of an old romance with Massimiliano Allegri. AC Milan performed poorly last season, finishing in eighth place. As a result, they are absent from European club competitions in the 2025-2026 edition.

Not only did they bring back Allegri, who delivered the Serie A title in 2010-2011, but Milan also provided excellent support to Allegri in the transfer market. Luka Modric, Pervis Estupinan, Samuele Ricci, and Ardon Jashari are players who are expected to become the backbone of the revival of "I Rossoneri."

In addition, Milan is also still pursuing new players, such as Rasmus Hojlund (Manchester United), Koni De Winter (Genoa), and Caleb Okoli (Leicester City).

"I am pleased with the players' performance during one month of preseason training. There are no injured players. It is time for us to prepare for important matches," said Allegri.

Beyond those four teams, several dark horses have the potential to enliven the Scudetto race and the hunt for Champions League spots. They are AS Roma, Fiorentina, Bologna, and Como. (REUTERS/AFP)