The Salento-born coach will return to Campania on Monday, November 17, after a few days’ rest coinciding with the international break. In the meantime, training will be entrusted to his assistant Stellini

Absent. Justified, of course. But absent nonetheless. Antonio Conte was not at Castel Volturno today for the resumption of training. A three-day leave of absence “already planned and agreed upon with the club some time ago,” according to an official statement from Napoli. However, this time it is causing a stir because it comes after his outburst against the team following the ugly defeat in Bologna and after president Aurelio De Laurentiis had to resort to a long post on social media to put an end to rumors of the coach’s alleged resignation. In short, Conte will return to Castel Volturno at the beginning of next week, when all the national team players will also begin to return. In the meantime, he is enjoying time with his family in Turin, trying to get over the disappointment with which he left the Dall’Ara stadium on Sunday evening.

The club’s stance in recent days has always been clear: everyone is behind Conte. Now it is up to the coach and the players to rediscover the chemistry and desire to fight together that has been lacking at the start of this season. Because the next series of matches will be very tough. Atalanta, Roma, and Juve in the league, Qarabag and Benfica in the Champions League. And in between, there is also the Coppa Italia match against Cagliari. So, it will no longer be possible to “look after one’s own backyard” or think about playing “without heart.” Conte will be recharging his batteries in Turin, ready to return and transfer the necessary energy to his team to overcome the obstacle. To see Napoli as a real team again, as in last season.