De Laurentiis wants €2 billion to sell Napoli: talks resume with Rizzetta

Talks resume over the sale of the club, but the valuation is already very high

The saga over the future of SSC Napoli is back, and for once, neither the pitch nor Massimiliano Allegri has anything to do with it. After six months of negotiations and a halt announced through the press, Aurelio De Laurentiis and Matt Rizzetta, president of Napoli Basket, have resumed talks in recent days. Rizzetta still wants to buy the club. According to Corriere dello Sport, the head of FilmAuro has not shut the door completely this time.

New meeting

Aurelio De Laurentiis met Matt Rizzetta yesterday afternoon at the de Bonart hotel in Chiaia, where the pre-Champions dinner with Allegri and sporting director Manna was held. The meeting came shortly before Napoli Basket's EuroCup match against Turkish side Tofaş Spor.

As their face-to-face meeting confirms, the two parties remain on excellent terms. Rizzetta has once again reiterated through the press his desire to take control of Napoli football club alongside a group of Italian-American investors linked to him.

Rizzetta’s words

Rizzetta confirmed his interest in buying Napoli with the aim of creating a multi-sport club alongside Napoli basket. He spoke on the sidelines of his address at the conference "The business of sport: from the America's Cup to social projects for the local area" at the Fondazione Banco di Napoli.

The Italian-American said: "I have a very good relationship with Aurelio, one of the utmost respect. I’m here, and I would be honoured to take on the legacy he has built from a bankruptcy more than twenty years ago. One day I would like to take on this commitment and this responsibility. And I can reassure the fans that I would do everything and more not to let them down"

De Laurentiis wants the full 2 billion immediately

Advisers handled the first phase of negotiations, but De Laurentiis halted and rejected the talks, less over the sums on the table than the proposed payment terms.

For the Napoli owner, discounts are out of the question. He knows the club package could soon also include a new stadium to be built on land owned by Q8, with whom talks have already begun.

According to the Rome-based newspaper, €2 billion paid in full and immediately, without instalments, would make him waver. "Anyone capable of repaying what I have done over these years should come forward. I don't believe such a person exists," he had said not even