Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has said his club will not sign any more African players unless they agree to sit out the Africa Cup of Nations.
The tournament takes place every two years and usually lasts a month from early January to the middle of the major European league season – except in 2019, when it was held from June to July for the first time and until the present only.
“Enough is enough for Africans unless they give up on the Africa Cup of Nations,” De Laurentiis said during a streaming event on Wall Street Italy.
“I will not buy them again for this reason. We pay to send them around the world to play for others in the middle of the season.”
Kalidou Koulibaly, a defender who moved from Napoli to Chelsea in the summer, led Senegal to their maiden African Cup title earlier this year.
“The most important thing for me is everyone’s respect,” Coulibaly said when asked about De Laurentiis’ comments on Wednesday.
“You can’t talk about African national teams like that. You have to respect as you respect the European teams.”
Koulibaly said it was a “difficult moment” for Napoli at the Africa Cup of Nations but the comments were unfair.
“As the captain of Senegal, I think it’s not a good way to talk about African teams, but I respect what he thinks. If he thinks a team can play without African players, that’s up to him.”
The Chelsea center-back says others at Napoli don’t support De Laurentiis’ view.
“Not everyone has the same idea as him at the club because I know everyone there. Fans don’t think like that. It’s not an idea of the community, of the city, because the city is very respectful. That’s what he thinks, not what the city thinks.”
Napoli still has three African players on their books: Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen, Cameroonian midfielder Andre Frank Zambo Anguesa, and Algerian midfielder Adam Ounas.
The African section of FIFPro, the global group of players’ unions, said it was “shocked by the arrogance and contempt” for De Laurentiis.
“Instead of attacking African players, he should directly address and criticize those who design the schedule without considering the condition of the players,” the organization said in a tweet.
