In the future, Italian club Napoli will not sign African or South American international players unless they accept the absence of their country’s teams in the middle of the European football season, according to club president Aurelio De Laurentiis.
“I will not accept them for the African Cup of Nations or the South American competitions,” Laurentiis said during a program broadcast Tuesday night on the Wall Street Italy economic website.
He added: “Don’t tell me more about the Africans (players)… I wish them good luck, but either they will sign me out of the African Cup of Nations and if that doesn’t happen (…) I will never include them.”
During the last continental tournament, held in Cameroon from January to February, Napoli lost several key players from their squad, including Senegalese defender Kalidou Koulibaly to Chelsea this summer and Cameroonian midfielder Frank Zambo-Anges.
Had it not been for Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen’s injury that led to his absence from the tournament, Napoli would have lost another star in a month of the season. “Between this tournament and the South American World Cup qualifier, these players are never available. We are idiots who pay salaries to send them to play for others.”
The Africa Cup of Nations has been held every two years on its traditional date in the first two months of the year, but the next edition will take place in Côte d’Ivoire in January 2024 after it was scheduled for June 2023 and was postponed due to rains. season in Ivory Coast during the summer months. The America’s Cup is also held every two years in the summer, but World Cup qualifiers are played during the European season.
While there are no qualifiers for the America’s Cup, in which all ten teams participate, the same does not apply to the continent, which increases the number of matches during the season. Notably, clubs are required to allow players from other countries to join their teams during international periods controlled by the International Football Association (FIFA).
