Napoli President Aurelio De Laurentiis said Maurizio Sarri was “very highly-strung,” especially compared to Carlo Ancelotti, while Sinisa Mihajlovic was “too energetic.”
The patron spoke at a panel set up by Il Corriere di Mezzogiorno and discussed his choice of tacticians.
“I chose Sarri against everyone’s advice. At the time, the city was covered in banners protesting my decision,” insisted ADL.
Napoli President Aurelio De Laurentiis said Maurizio Sarri was “very highly-strung,” especially compared to Carlo Ancelotti, while Sinisa Mihajlovic was “too energetic.”
The patron spoke at a panel set up by Il Corriere di Mezzogiorno and discussed his choice of tacticians.
“I chose Sarri against everyone’s advice. At the time, the city was covered in banners protesting my decision,” insisted ADL.
“He had a way of making himself adored even by the most extreme fringes of the fanbase. He’s an individualist, someone who suffered in the lower leagues on pitches with no grass and the odd stone. He’d also suffer because he tended to be fired after six games.
“Then he had that run from Serie C to Serie A with Empoli and when we lost 4-2 against him, I thought he might be the right man for us.
“I had also wanted Mihajlovic, but he didn’t convince me, as he was too energetic and forced the players to follow him.”
Sarri, now at Chelsea, is famous for his chain-smoking and grumpy demeanour, as well as a fanatical devotion to his work.
“On the other hand, Sarri seemed timid and I discovered he was so dissatisfied with his past (working in finance). For a Communist to base his profession on the evils of money brought him to suffer from a syndrome of dissatisfaction.
“I found Sarri to be very highly-strung. His wife couldn’t even come to the stadium. I used to say to Sarri, who shall we buy? He’d reply that he didn’t want to know anything about it.”
On the other hand, Ancelotti brings a very different vibe to the Stadio San Paolo.
“I’d known Ancelotti for five years, but when we met up, I found a man who was relaxed and content, with a thousand interests you could sit down and talk about, without ever having to discuss football all night.”
De Laurentiis revealed earlier in the panel that he had rejected an offer “worth £95m” for defender Kalidou Koulibaly, believed to be from Manchester United.
He had his own near miss on the transfer market, though.
“I went to Milan in order to talk to Mauro Icardi’s wife. I offered up to €65m, but it didn’t go through. Never mind.”