High standards and relentless ambition have defined Antonio Conte's illustrious career. It is those qualities that have propelled the Italian to win a host of trophies – and he plans to add another in Riyadh on Monday.
Having seen off AC Milan in the semi-finals of the Italian Super Cup on Thursday, Conte's Napoli face Bologna in Monday's final as they look to add to last season's Serie A title.
Conte's is a collection few can rival: five Serie A titles as a player and five more as a coach – not to mention a Premier League and FA Cup during his time at Chelsea.
“It's always a good thing to play a final or a tournament,” Conte told The National.
“For us, this is the first goal of this season, and we were really good in the last game to win against Milan. For sure we want to try to lift the trophy, but Bologna have the same thoughts.”
Napoli reached the final courtesy of a comfortable 2-0 win over AC Milan at Al Awwal Park – the home of Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr – which will also host Monday's final.
Goals from David Neres and Rasmus Hojlund sealed the win for Conte's side in front of a packed crowd on Thursday night. Bologna sealed their place in the title match after seeing off Inter Milan 3-2 on penalties following a 1-1 draw.
This week has marked Conte’s first experience of the Super Cup in Saudi Arabia, and it is one he has welcomed.
“To come to Saudi Arabia, in my opinion, was good,” he said. “This is my first experience here and we are trying to enjoy this competition, this tournament.”
The feeling appears mutual. Conte's presence in Riyadh has stirred a strong reaction among local football fans who admire his love for the game and unrelenting pursuit of success.
At Napoli’s open training session last week, several local supporters explained that the coach’s passion mirrors their own and that they have felt a deeper connection with Napoli since he arrived in 2024.
“He's very passionate and he loves what he does,” said local fan Mohamed Alruqayb. “He gives all that he has for the team. He's a fan like you.”
Conte attributes his love for football back to his late father, Cosomino Conte, and he still lives and breathes the game despite having already achieved so much.
“My father had a really great passion for this sport. He transferred all his passion to me,” Conte explained. “I think the secret is my passion for this sport, for football. Because passion has many times helped me to overcome difficulty.”
Juve take advantage back home
Juventus are creeping back into the Serie A title discussion after deservedly beating Roma 2-1 on Saturday and moving four points behind league leaders Inter Milan.
Francisco Conceicao and Lois Openda scored the goals which decided an engaging encounter in Turin as Juve claimed a second big win in as many matches after beating Bologna last weekend.
Juve stay fifth on 29 points but are only one point behind fourth-paced Roma who sit in the last Champions League spot and suffered a sixth league defeat of the season.
“I think we deserved to win, we knew that today's match was important and we did what we set out to do – we won,” said Conceicao. “We're up there after winning these two important matches but we need to get our heads straight on to the next one.”
Luciano Spalletti's Juve have played a game more than Inter, champions Napoli and AC Milan, who occupy the top three places and will play their matches from this round of fixtures next month, due to being in Saudi Arabia.
