Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has rejected the idea of re-signing African players unless they sign an agreement to withdraw from the African Cup of Nations.
Napoli’s current roster includes Nigerian Victor Osimhen and Cameroonian Andre Zambo Angueza, while his Senegalese captain Kalidou Koulibaly left this summer for Chelsea.
De Laurentiis told the Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport: “I told the club’s management, guys, don’t talk to me about contracts with African players anymore.”
Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis vowed never to buy an African player again “unless they sign an agreement to withdraw from the African Cup of Nations”. pic.twitter.com/xIKxCFm4ob
— SPORTbible (@sportbible) August 3, 2022
He added: “I love them, but signing them will be on the condition that they do not participate in the African Cup of Nations, otherwise these players will not be available to us.”
“We are idiots who only pay salaries to send them all over the world to play for others,” he explained.
Notably, the African Cup of Nations, usually held every two years in the winter, is what causes European clubs to lose their stars in the middle of the season.
Source: “Agency”