Massimiliano Allegri expressed his joy and a touch of emotion as he was officially unveiled as the new Napoli coach on at Teatro San Carlo on Tuesday.
"I'm honoured to be here. This is the start of a wonderful adventure,” he began.
"Napoli is a crazy city with incredibly passionate fans. I'm so happy to have been given this reception.
“I've been close to [Aurelio] De Laurentiis before and now the conditions were right for us to work together. I've known him for years and I've previously worked with [Giovanni] Manna at Juventus so we've already got a good connection there.
“Since Aurelio became president, Napoli have been playing in Europe for 17 years. I've inherited a team that was coached for two years but a great coach in [Antonio] Conte. I took over from Antonio once before, at Juventus, and I hope things work out just as well this time around.
“We must chase all of our targets: Serie A, Champions League and Coppa Italia. I always say March is the decisive month of the season and we want to get there and still be in the running on all fronts – at least that's the aim.
“We have a strong squad that can play different ways. There's excitement and we have the quality to do well. The season gets under way tomorrow and we have to be in the best conditions to be able to give our all. We're going to need everyone because we have a hectic fixture list and there will be difficult times when we'll need to rely on the strength of the group.
"The challenge is to be both competitive and sustainable. The coach has to be on the same page as the club and understand the club's financial requirements. Some people say I'm a company man but to me that's a compliment and a precise choice.
“We have an excellent squad here. I want to get to know everyone. We'll get straight down to work with the first group of players and slowly I'll have a clearer picture.”
