"Messi is a cretin"; English "women don't wash their genitelia": here are some of Aurelio de Laurentiis most controversial and outrageous comments over the years.
Napoli’s outspoken president Aurelio de Laurentiis has never been one to mince his words. His controversial comments, downright insults and sometimes Trump-style ramblings come thick and fast. And over the years, few have escaped his wrath.
His latest targets have been PSG, Roma, and the city of Liverpool, and in the past he has also taken swipes at FIFA, England and its women, Messi, Karim Benzema, former Napoli coaches, Juventus, Serie A and the “spoiled superstars” of Real Madrid. There were too many to choose from, but here we’ve compiled some of De Laurentiis’ most controversial and oddest comments.
The best (or worst) of De Laurentiis
These were his words before storming out of out of a Serie A fixture draw a few years ago, claiming claimed that there was conspiracy against his club.
English people may take issue with his comments regarding their lifestyle, diet and lack of hygiene, but there is no argument that bidets are a scarcity on the British Isles.
His latest comments caused quite a stir in Liverpool, and to the residents of Abbey Road in London.
The words “Messi is” are usually followed by “the best” or “the greatest of all time”, but Aurelio de Laurentiis took a curve ball with this one.
Perhaps his experience in England in the 70s has shaped his negative opinion of the country. But it seems he does have a soft spot for English women, despite his previous comments regarding their hygiene standards.
This threat was aimed at Alejandro Mazzoni, the agent of former Napoli player Ezequiel Lavezzi, who at the time, was being linked with a move to San Paolo.
Just this week, the Napoli president gave his thoughts on who should make up the EU, and of course he included his beloved England despite its imminent 'brexit' from the Union. Although we’re not sure how the other 23 other members states would feel about his proposal, which also includes scrapping the UEFA Champions League for a new competition only involving teams from Europe’s top five leagues.
Speaking ahead of Napoli’s game against PSG on Wednesday, he questioned the integrity of PSG’s accountants while also taking a swipe at Qatar.
This was the 69-year-old’s response regarding two men 39 years his junior -- 30-year-olds Angel Di Maria and Karim Benzema, who had been linked with Napoli in the summer. “Here is another crazy person to add to the list…,” was Benzema’s response on Twitter.
It seems De Laurentiis has about as much love for agents as he does for England. Perhaps he is delighted now to see that Ezequiel Lavezzi is playing in the future home of football with Hebei China Fortune.
De Laurentiis putting the Napoli fans in their place, which is seemingly in the bar and not in matters of the club.
De Laurentiis fired this controversial accusation at the owners of Liverpool and Roma, after he lost out to The Reds on signing Brazilian goalkeeper Alisson from Roma in the summer. The accusation is apparently based on links between Roma owner James Pallotta and the Fenway Sports Group, who own Liverpool FC and the Boston Red Sox.
These were his latest comments this week in an interview with Le Parisien in which he gave his proposals for the future of football, a game he has previously admitted to knowing “nothing about” until he took over Napoli in 2004. Since then it seems he has learned a lot about the game, as certainly he has a lot to say about everyone involved in it.