De Bruyne is here, and Grelish is here too? Naples has become the "Premier League of Frustrated Ones"

Sun, the sea, and a city bathed in the glory of the newly won the Serie A championship. Naples is undoubtedly an ideal destination for wealthy footballers who are eager to have a brand new experience this summer.

"Naples are amazing if you have money," exclaimed local journalist Vincenzo Credendino. "Today you take a boat to Capri, tomorrow you go to Amalfi, to Pompeii. There is something delicious there and there is plenty to do. If you have money, Naples is very attractive, it has always been like this."

Although real estate agents have long recommended Posilipo's luxury hillside villas to newcomers, there has been a recent phenomenon - those players who have been attracted to Naples by club chairman Aurelio de Laurentis are from the Premier League.

McTominay, who transferred from Manchester United, led Naples to succeed in Serie A, and he himself won respect and admiration. Then, DeLaurentis included six-time Premier League champion Kevin DeBruyne in head coach Antonio Conte.

Grelish, Garnacho and Sancho were all in the attention of Naples,

Conte took office last summer, when Naples had three players who had already been poached from the Premier League, McTominay, Lukaku and Billy Gilmore.

There are more de Bruyne this summer, and there may be more.

De Bruyne's former Manchester City teammate Grillish (transferring from Aston Villa for £100 million four years ago) also attracted attention, Manchester United winger Garnacho also received attention, and Claydendino believes another Manchester United striker Sancho is also an interest in Dee, who was loaned to Chelsea last season.

"People in Naples think De Laurentis is crazy," Claydendino said with a smile. "In our hearts, he is obviously a chairman who strives for victory, but he always puts finance first, is always very cautious about the economy, and has made a lot of player trades."

"This used to be the core business of Naples. Now things have changed. De Laurentis smells the bloody smell of opponents and enemies."

Naples won the Serie A title last season, their fourth championship in history and the second time in three seasons. The first two championships were in 1987 and 1990, when they were in the era of Diego Maradona. In 2023, Spaletti led the team to win the team's first Serie A championship in 33 years, and then Conte led Naples to the top again last season.

Conte's team eventually defeated Inter Milan with one point. Earlier this month, Inter Milan lost meritorious coach Simeone Inzaghi, who turned to Saudi Riyadh Crescent. Atlanta won third place in the league, head coach Gasperini, who coached for a long time and led the team to the UEFA Cup two years ago, also switched to Rome.

The traditional giant Juventus is undergoing some degree of restructuring, and AC Milan will not participate in the European game next season. As opponents stagnate, Naples is seeking to take advantage of the opportunity.

"Naples are very stable. They plan ahead of others, so they have enough funds to convince players like De Bruyne to take on this new adventure," explained Federico Mali, an executive of Milan International Football, who specializes in transfer strategies, club acquisitions, MCOs and cross-border strategies.

According to the transfer market website, Naples ranks 30th in the list of the most valuable clubs in the world, below 15 Premier League clubs, but they rank fifth among Italian clubs.

In 2004, Naples went bankrupt and fell into the third league. Afterwards, De Laurentis acquired the club and led the team back to Serie A in 2007. They have been regular visitors to European stadiums ever since. They won the Italian Cup three times and ended up with the long-awaited Serie A title.

"Naples is a very well-managed club," said Mali. "For the DeLaurentis family, Naples is the main industry of their family, and they have achieved brilliant achievements both on and off the court over the past 10 to 15 years."

Mari highlights the case of Gonzalo Higuain's transfer to Juventus for £75.3 million, and Kvaratshelia (£59 million) and Cavani (£55 million) to Paris Saint-Germain. Naples spent more than £70 million to bring in Osmeen in 2020 and is expected to leave this summer after being loaned to Galatasaray for a year.

"They are very good at discovering these talents and placing them in a place where they can play well and play in Europe," added Mali. "If you have this stability to grow your business, have a club where everyone is united and has a clear goal, over time, you will earn higher than some clubs that are usually stronger than you (such as AC Milan, Inter and Juventus) and become richer than them."

Players who play 60% of the Premier League can play 80% of the level in Serie A

If De Laurentis "sniffs the smell of blood", it may also be because there is a continuous winner on the coach's bench teasing him.

Last season's Serie A championship was Conte's fifth Serie A championship in his coaching career, and he is also the first head coach to lead three different teams to win the Serie A championship. During the gap between coaching Juventus and Inter Milan, he also led Chelsea to win the Premier League title.

"If you want young players to grow, you have to choose other coaches," Claydendino explained. "If you choose Antonio Conte, you should know that he will let you buy Lukaku."

In fact, after being loaned to Inter Milan and Roma, Belgian striker Lukaku moved permanently from Chelsea to Napoli in the early days of his coaching last summer.

"Conte wants to live in the present and win in the present," added Claydendino, "he can't win games with young players and inexperienced players. He likes young players, but only if they are already star players."

De Bruyne's contract with Manchester City has expired, and he is another experienced and well-achieved player. He reportedly reduced his salary to join Naples. According to Claydendino, his initial annual salary requirement was 10 million euros, but now it has dropped to 5.5 million euros. Even so, he is the second highest-paid player in Naples, second only to his Belgian compatriot Lukaku.

de Laurentis also wants to take Grelish, Sancho or Garnacho, and their prices are not cheap either. This begs the question why Conte and DeLaurentis are buying expensive players who are not doing well or outdated in the Premier League.

"Some players in the Premier League are not in ideal form and can only play at 60% of the level, but if they come to Italy, considering the current gap between the leagues, they can play at 80% of the level in Serie A," said Claydendino.

Serie A players are undoubtedly older. Last season, Naples' average age was 28.2 years old, making it the second largest team in the Serie A, second only to Inter Milan, the second-place runner-up in the Champions League, and the average age of Inter Milan is 29.1 years old. According to data from the transfer market website, Fulham is the oldest team in the Premier League with an average age of 27.9 years old.

Opta's statistics also show that the Premier League is more intense and the team puts more pressure. The opponent's possession in the offensive zone three is more than 600 times higher than last season's Serie A. With a high turnover rate, the number of goals scored 40 more than Serie A, and the number of players dribbling or holding balls is also significantly more than that of Serie A.

The forward Kenan Davis, who transferred from Aston Villa to Udinese last season, said: "Udinese is slower than Premier League teams in tactics."

"I have good physical fitness, and there are really not many players like me in Serie A. You see, Lukaku and other players with good physical fitness have performed well. In England, everyone has good physical fitness and is very fast."

Having said that, Conte is famous for his hard training of players. Despite Naples' charm, players who join should not expect to enjoy the holiday here.

"De Bruyne may feel like he will join a competitive team whose coach is one of the best in the world, a coach known for his rigor in training, he will make players run wild, but he is a winner," added Mali.

"Serie A is still known for its tactics, and if De Bruyne considers becoming a sports director or coach in the future, it is a feasible path to learn new knowledge of Italian football with Antonio Conte. It sounds fascinating to play for the best team in the league under the guidance of top coaches."