Napoli are threatening to boycott the Supercoppa Italiana, which will be played in Saudi Arabia in January. AC Milan are next in line, but Franco Ordine argues that accepting the spot would be a serious mistake.
As we have written about before, Napoli are not keen on making the trip to Saudi Arabia for the Supercoppa in January. The tournament is no longer just one game either, with four games participating (two semi-finals and a final).
In his latest editorial for MilanNews, Franco Ordine shared his thoughts on the idea of Milan replacing Napoli in the tournament. The prize money ranges from €3-7m, but the Rossoneri would make a mistake to say yes.
“Milan in the Supercoppa instead of Napoli? No! Napoli will likely be forced to participate, because the consequences of dropping out would be painful (fines and penalties from Lega Serie A). If this were not the case, however, they would ask Milan to participate. And here reasoning needs to be done.
“Participating in a tournament by replacing those who deserved to play on the field is never an event to be proud of. Then there’s the political aspect. Why on earth should Milan repair a possible “rip” caused by Napoli, which would expose a conflict in the league and make future governance?
“Then there’s the logistics. Suddenly, Stefano Pioli would find himself with a calendar, already clogged, filled with two more games. For this reason, my conclusion is the following: it won’t happen, but if Milan – as they say in the corridors of the Serie A – would be offered to replace Napoli, then they would make a serious mistake by saying yes,” he wrote.
One can only agree with Ordine. The schedule is already very tight and the Supercoppa, frankly, has lost its prestige. In any case, Milan don’t deserve to be there given how they performed in the 2022-22 season.
