Napoli manager Antonio Conte hopes that everything will go well for his friend Claudio Ranieri after he came out of retirement to take over at AS Roma, but only after their Serie A meeting this weekend is out of the way.
Ranieri was tempted back into management by a return to where he began as a player, and his third spell at Roma comes after the club sacked two coaches already this season and with the team 12th in the standings.
A trip to leaders Napoli is Ranieri’s first task, and Conte is looking forward to meeting up with the 73-year-old.
“I am pleased to see Claudio, I have great esteem for him and there is also friendship,” Conte told reporters ahead of Sunday’s game.
“I am happy with the chance he had been given. It will be a tough game, for us and for them. Last year Roma finished ahead of Napoli, they are in the Europa League and had a good transfer window.
“They are not performing according to expectations and I hope for Claudio that everything starts to work, after Sunday’s game.”
The arrival of Ranieri in place of Ivan Juric brings with it not just the danger of the ‘new manager bounce’ but also upsets Conte’s plans for the game.
“When a team changes coach there is an important input on a nervous level,” Conte said.
“They are at the third change on the bench. It’s inevitable that, if Juric had remained, we knew what kind of team we were going to face.
“Now it’s an enigma, we don’t have much information nor do we know how they will deal with us. So let’s think about ourselves, there is a desire and enthusiasm to continue this path.”
Conte’s Napoli may be top of the table, but he knows it is still early, and with just two points separating the top six clubs, which includes the likes of Atalanta, Fiorentina and Lazio, for now it is a different title race than usual.
“Only 12 games have passed and there are many teams within very few points,” he said.
“We are doing well, but so are the others. There isn’t one team which has distanced the others. Perhaps there is a little amazement in seeing some teams in those positions in the standings.”
