Each week sports reporter Mina Rzouki answers a selection of readers' questions submitted via social media. If you have a question for Mina, you can ask her on either X or Instagram – both @MinaRzouki.
Q: What is ‘football heritage’ and how much of a part does it play in the latter round Uefa Champions League ties?
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A: The term "football heritage" was made popular by Jose Mourinho in his epic 2018 rant when he was in charge of Manchester United.
To those who are not familiar with the term, it relates to the core identity of a club and encompasses the traditions, historical milestones, cultural aspects, and identity tied to football clubs, national teams, players, and the sport in general.
Mourinho spoke of heritage when he was explaining Manchester United’s Uefa Champions League loss to Sevilla. “I say what I feel, I say what I see, and I say what I think," he said following his team's last-16 exit.
“And I think it’s a fair analysis – we’re out to a team that’s not a giant, not a team with the history of Manchester United, not a team with the heritage of Manchester United.”
As it turned out, 2018 was a great year for football heritage chat as it was also the season that Juventus defeated Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League last-16 and Giorgio Chiellini delivered a damning verdict on the North London club.
“It’s the history of the Tottenham,” said the Italian defender. “They always create many chances and score so much but, in the end, they miss always something to arrive at the end. We believe in history.”
Which brings us back to this current season’s Uefa Champions League. History always matters but it’s not the deciding factor.
Take Paris Saint-Germain v Arsenal, for example. I wondered whether the experience of consistent competitive performances in the competition from PSG for more than a decade had helped the French side defeat Arsenal in the first leg.
The Gunners had spent seven campaigns out of the Champions League before reaching the quarter-finals for the first time in 14 years last season.
Both PSG and Arsenal are still building their history in this competition. Luis Enrique’s pedigree, in particular, his heritage if you will, may be the difference maker.
His experience – including his treble-winning season with Barcelona in 2015 – is what drives PSG. He knows what it takes to win.
But in the end, the identity of a club and that of its head coach is a factor in determining a winner but it’s not the determining factor.
Q: Should Aurelio De Laurentiis give Antonio Conte everything he wants at Napoli or accept that he’ll never be satisfied?
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A: Both. For those who need more context, Aurelio De Laurentiis is Napoli’s owner and is famously reticent when it comes to giving his coaches all they demand. Antonio Conte is famous for wanting the best of the best and almost always delivers the club he is in charge of a domestic title.
Conte is on the verge of securing Napoli another scudetto with a squad that’s good but perhaps nowhere near the level of, say, Inter Milan – and others for that matter.
For once, I think his demands are actually reasonable and I cannot fault anything he’s said or complained about this season. He is right when he says that his name brings with it certain expectations – everyone always believes in Conte’s ability to win.
But for him to do so, he must be given the right tools to build a lasting and winning project and that includes a good squad, a great training facility and team co-operation at the highest level. Being tasked with securing success when he has a squad that pales in comparison to others in Serie A is a tough ask.
Napoli finished in 10th last season, a mammoth 41 points behind champions Inter, before losing the services of striker Victor Osimhen – on a season-long loan to Galatasaray – during the summer and then winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia to PSG in January.
Brazilian winger David Neres is set to miss the season finale due to a calf problem that is reported to have been brought on by the training-ground pitches at Castel Volturno that are in desperate need of upgrading.
In 2014, Spanish coach Rafa Benitez was asked what Napoli lacked to become a truly big club and he summed it up in one word – infrastructure. More than a decade on and this problem has yet to be addressed.
Many years ago, plans were made to revamp the Castel Volturno facility or construct a new one, but those plans never materialised. Serie A rivals Fiorentina are a clear example of a club that has benefitted from owners investing in their infrastructure.
Right now, Conte is having to play with a makeshift defence without the likes of Alessandro Buongiorno and Juan Jesus. No suitable replacement was found for Kvaratskhelia, with Swiss forward Noah Okafor proving not up to the task after joining on loan from AC Milan.
Napoli are only playing once a week but Conte has achieved a lot with a little this season.
The Italian has been forced to adapt his tactics, to change formations and vary his approach throughout the season. He is the reason Napoli fans may celebrate at the end of the season.
Q: Philippe Coutinho is still an Aston Villa player, any chance of him being brought back in?
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A: Like most, I completely forgot he’s still a Villa player. Just a few days ago, I was reading about the player’s relationship with Jurgen Klopp during his time at Liverpool.
Klopp is said to have offered the player some advice, telling him: “Stay here and they will end up building a statue in your honour. Go somewhere else, to Barcelona, to Bayern Munich, to Real Madrid, and you will be just another player. Here you can be something more.”
The Brazilian never fulfilled his promise after he left Liverpool for Barca in 2018 for a jaw-dropping £142 million. He returned to the Premier League with Villa – who were then managed by his former Liverpool teammate Steven Gerrard – on loan in January 2022 before making the move permanent four months later in a cut-price £17m deal.
Coutinho, though, failed to reach anywhere near the heights of his spell on Merseyside and was loaned out to Qatari club Al Duhail in 2023 before returning to his childhood club Vasco da Gama last summer, also in a temporary move.
The Brazilian club are desperate to keep him and made a move to sign Coutinho on a free transfer last summer, but Aston Villa declined, not wanting to register a financial loss on their accounts.
His contract ends in 2026 and Vasco are pushing to extend the loan or have the player terminate his contract with Villa.
I cannot see a return to Villa benefitting club or player. Coutinho appears to be prioritising a stay in Brazil, where he is also involved with a non-profit organisation that focuses on player development and education of young people.
