De Laurentiis Gives Allegri Temporary Backing

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis is keeping his faith in head coach Massimiliano Allegri for now. The decision was announced after a crisis meeting at the training ground on Friday. Napoli made a poor start to the 2026/27 season and lost seven of their first 14 matches.

After 10 matches, the team sit eighth in Serie A, 14 points behind leaders Lazio. Having lost three of their first four European matches, Napoli are at serious risk of failing to reach the Champions League knockout rounds. After a 4-1 defeat to Porto, Matteo Politano said that some senior players and non-Italian teammates were not taking enough responsibility. Kevin De Bruyne and Lorenzo Lucca were seen arguing on the pitch.

Towards the end of the week, reports emerged of a split in the dressing room, with some players acting too individually and small cliques forming within the club. Napoli play Lazio at home on Sunday. Lazio have won all five of their league matches away from home this season. Napoli entered a two-day training camp, and De Laurentiis went to the training ground to meet Allegri, the coaching staff and the players face to face.

According to La Gazzetta dello Sport's Saturday report, De Laurentiis spoke directly with Allegri and sporting director Giovanni Manna, and also met the squad. Allegri is currently reported to retain the president's confidence, and no final warning has been given to him ahead of the Lazio match. Even so, there are problems that need to be solved. Chief among them are the high number of defeats, the habit of conceding goals in the final half hour of matches, and the growing injury problems that have affected the team since the start of the season.