The managerial merry-go-round is officially underway
With the 2025/26 season approaching its finale, the market for managers is heating up fast. The first domino to fall is at Napoli: Antonio Conte has communicated his intention to leave the Neapolitan bench at the end of the season, effectively triggering a succession race set to influence the decisions of every major Italian club.
Sarri the favourite at Napoli, but the Allegri trail hasn’t gone cold entirely
According to sources also picked up by Gazzetta dello Sport, the leading candidate to take over the Napoli dugout is Maurizio Sarri, a tactically sharp manager with a brilliant history at that very club. The possibility of Allegri moving to Napoli had gained traction in recent hours, but at present it appears to have been scaled back significantly, with Sarri looking clearly ahead in the race to succeed Conte.
Allegri: the national team is an option, but everything hinges on Cagliari
The name of Massimiliano Allegri keeps circulating in multiple directions. Beyond Napoli, the Livorno-born coach is also being linked with the Italy national team bench, where he could find room should the Azzurri project undergo a change of direction.
However, Allegri’s real crossroads is called Cagliari. Sunday’s match, decisive for Milan’s Champions League qualification, will also automatically determine the manager’s own future: should the Rossoneri secure European football, his contract includes an automatic renewal until 2028 worth approximately €6 million net per season — that’s more than €12 million net guaranteed over the next two years, a figure that is no easy thing to walk away from.
As recently explored on these pages, the Allegri-Cagliari knot remains one of the most complex scenarios of this final stretch of the season: Champions League qualification could lock in his relationship with Milan, but it would not automatically resolve the internal tensions within the club.
Allegri’s conditions for staying at Milan
The Milan manager has not merely been waiting: he is said to have set precise conditions for continuing his role. Chief among them are a demand for a quality transfer window — bringing in experienced, high-calibre players — and above all the resolution of internal club tensions. The power struggles between different roles and figures within the organisation, which have weighed heavily on recent years, would no longer be tolerable for a manager who wants to work in a calm, well-structured environment.
The overall picture remains fluid. On Sunday evening, after the final whistle of Milan vs Cagliari, many of the pieces of this puzzle should finally find their proper place.
