Kevin De Bruyne is nearing a move to Serie A champions Napoli as a free agent following his departure from Manchester City.
Napoli sporting director Giovanni Manna confirmed the Belgian is “pretty close” to joining the club. Joining Napoli will potentially link him up with fellow Premier League exports Romelu Lukaku, Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour.
De Bruyne, 33, recently ended a decade-long spell at City. He won six Premier League titles and the 2023 Champions League at City.
Antonio Conte, meanwhile, has confirmed he will remain as Napoli’s head coach after speculation linking him with a return to Juventus.
“We have a contract and seeing as we have a shared vision, we don’t have anything else to add. We’re moving forward because we’re serious people,” Conte told Sky Sport.
Asked by reporters late on Thursday night, Napoli‘s sporting director Giovanni Manna said that De Bruyne was “pretty close” to joining Romelu Lukaku, Scott McTominay and Billy Gilmour in moving to Italy from the Premier League.
Earlier this month De Bruyne ended a 10-year spell at Manchester City, where he won six Premier League titles and the 2023 Champions League.
De Bruyne, 33, will have Conte as his coach after he and Napoli ended weeks of speculation by confirming that he would stay to defend the Scudetto.
“At the end of every season coach and club always get together to assess the past season, to see if there is a shared vision and if there is still desire to continue towards certain goals,” Conte told Sky Sport.
“We have a contract and seeing as we have a shared vision, we don’t have anything else to add. We’re moving forward because we’re serious people.”