Napoli manager Maurizio Sarri is likely to be one of the hottest names in the transfer market. With (maybe) Chelsea and (definitely) Arsenal looking for a new man to take the hot seat, the Partenopei may find it a tad difficult to keep him, especially since his current contract has a £7m buy-out clause, valid through May. No wonder Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis wants him to sign a new deal.
But, according to the London Evening Standard, Sarri is eyeing the Premier League and may look for an exit depending on the terms offered. Another factor will be the funds made available for the manager to set up their future given how his squad with an average age of 27,2 years is not getting any younger.
As per the report, Sarri earns “only” £1.3m per year, although the value could be net wages as it is often custom to report those in Italy. Nevertheless, his earnings are well below Antonio Conte’s £9.6m (approximately £5.1m net) per year.
And Sarri will undoubtedly look to get a salary at least close to that of his peers at the top European clubs, especially if he is able to topple Juventus from the Serie A and bring Naples the title 28 years after their last one. So it is a question of whether Sarri and his success will be able to open De Laurentiis’ pockets.
Likely, he will not. And so, Sarri will be hoping a club — be it Chelsea, Arsenal or anyone else — activate his £7m clause before it expires at the end of May.