Ex-Napoli director taunts De Bruyne after Conte dispute: ‘Longer tongue’

Former Napoli director Pierpaolo Marino sides with Antonio Conte and his staff in their dispute with Kevin De Bruyne: ‘The breath often gets shorter, but the tongue gets longer.’

Napoli star De Bruyne made headlines last week with some spicy claims on ex-Partenopei boss Conte, admitting to being happy with his departure.

Conte’s assistant Cristian Stellini hit back, saying that the ex-Manchester City star showed “no joy or enthusiasm” in his debut season at the Stadio Maradona.

Marino, a former Napoli director, surely sides with Conte and his staff as the 71-year-old wrote on X: “One of my former coaches was right when he used to say: ‘For a footballer who gets past 32 or 33 years of age, the breath often gets shorter, but the tongue gets longer in return.'”

De Bruyne joined Napoli on a free transfer from Manchester City last summer, signing a contract until June 2027 with an option for a further season.

The Belgium international scored five goals and provided four assists in 21 appearances across all competitions, missing nearly five months of action due to a hamstring muscle injury.

Napoli are yet to appoint a replacement for Antonio Conte, but according to several sources, his successor at the Stadio Maradona will be Massimiliano Allegri.

Marino served as Napoli’s sporting director during the first part of the Diego Armando Maradona era, from 1984 to 1987, and then returned to the club as a general manager from 2004 to 2009.