Napoli erupts after securing Euro spot
Source: Agencies |
May 17, 2011, Tuesday
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Print Edition
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NAPOLI exuberantly celebrated its automatic Champions League spot after a 1-1 draw with Inter Milan on Sunday but doubts surrounding the future of coach Walter Mazzarri still linger.
The Naples club, which went bankrupt in 2004 and had to be reformed in the lower leagues, will return to the European Cup next season for the first time since Diego Maradona helped it qualify by winning the 1990 Italian title.
Its San Paolo stadium was filled with blue smoke, Mazzarri burst into tears and club owner Aurelio De Laurentiis, a film producer who brought one on Italy's most fervently supported clubs back from the brink of extinction, was thrown in the air.
"Now we will create a squad able to compete in Europe, where you need experience to play against certain sides," De Laurentiis said after his side had secured third spot.
Mazzarri, linked with Juventus has a rocky relationship with the owner. "It depends only on him," De Laurentiis added. "He has a two-year contract, otherwise it will be a soap opera. But if he asks me to leave, I'll say no."
Meanwhile, Sampdoria was relegated from Serie A after it lost 1-2 at home to Palermo and is now out of Italy's top flight for the first time since 2003.
The Genoa-based team needed a win to survive until the final round of matches, but the loss combined with Lecce's 2-0 victory over Bari means Sampdoria is four points behind Lecce.
Bari and Brescia are already relegated.
For Sampdoria, relegation marks a complete turnaround in fortunes after it began the season in the Champions League and was looking forward to celebrating the 20th anniversary of its only Serie A title.
Lecce needed two moments of magic from Jeda in the second half to ensure its place in Serie A. Roma's hopes of qualifying for next season's Champions League came to an end with a 1-2 loss away to Catania.
Also on Sunday, it was: Fiorentina 1, Bologna 1; Cesena 1, Brescia 0; Chievo Verona 0, Udinese 2; and Parma 1, Juventus 0.
The Naples club, which went bankrupt in 2004 and had to be reformed in the lower leagues, will return to the European Cup next season for the first time since Diego Maradona helped it qualify by winning the 1990 Italian title.
Its San Paolo stadium was filled with blue smoke, Mazzarri burst into tears and club owner Aurelio De Laurentiis, a film producer who brought one on Italy's most fervently supported clubs back from the brink of extinction, was thrown in the air.
"Now we will create a squad able to compete in Europe, where you need experience to play against certain sides," De Laurentiis said after his side had secured third spot.
Mazzarri, linked with Juventus has a rocky relationship with the owner. "It depends only on him," De Laurentiis added. "He has a two-year contract, otherwise it will be a soap opera. But if he asks me to leave, I'll say no."
Meanwhile, Sampdoria was relegated from Serie A after it lost 1-2 at home to Palermo and is now out of Italy's top flight for the first time since 2003.
The Genoa-based team needed a win to survive until the final round of matches, but the loss combined with Lecce's 2-0 victory over Bari means Sampdoria is four points behind Lecce.
Bari and Brescia are already relegated.
For Sampdoria, relegation marks a complete turnaround in fortunes after it began the season in the Champions League and was looking forward to celebrating the 20th anniversary of its only Serie A title.
Lecce needed two moments of magic from Jeda in the second half to ensure its place in Serie A. Roma's hopes of qualifying for next season's Champions League came to an end with a 1-2 loss away to Catania.
Also on Sunday, it was: Fiorentina 1, Bologna 1; Cesena 1, Brescia 0; Chievo Verona 0, Udinese 2; and Parma 1, Juventus 0.
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