The upcoming week will be crucial for Napoli as the team coached by Antonio Conte will face Juventus on Sunday before meeting Chelsea next Wednesday for one last crucial Champions League’s game that will determine whether or not Napoli will be eliminated from the most important European tournament. The Azzurri are currently in 25th place, the first team eliminated, but the tie against the English team could dramatically change their position in the standings. Before that, Juventus will host Napoli on Sunday at the Allianz Stadium for another key match for the Scudetto and Champions League race. This is why the upcoming two matches will probably also define the future of Napoli manager Conte, who will face two of his former teams. Juventus, where he was a player, team captain and then manager from 2011 to 2014 and then Chelsea, where he won a Premier League title and coached the Blues from 2016 to 2018. Here’s what you need to know ahead of a key week for Napoli:
How to watch Juventus vs. Napoli, odds
- Date: Sunday, Jan. 25 | Time: 12 p.m. ET
- Location: Allianz Stadium — Turin
- Live stream: Paramount+
- Odds: Juventus +104; Draw +208; Napoli +291
A difficult European campaign
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Napoli’s season has been deeply affected by injuries as Conte has had to face much of the season with some major absences to huge stars like Romelu Lukaku and Kevin de Bruyne, while other key players like Frank Anguissa or Alessandro Buongiorno also had injuries that forced them to not play regularly so far. Those absences have definitely been the biggest factor in any Napoli struggles so far this season, as Conte’s team come from the 2024-25 Scudetto win in his first season at the club. We knew Napoli could have some issues with more games to play but injuries didn’t help Conte to rotate his roster as much as he wished before the start of the new spell. While Napoli’s performances were acceptable in the Italian Serie A, things got more difficult when Napoli had to play in the Champions League.
With only two wins in seven games and three defeats including a 6-2 away loss to PSV, one of the most worrying performances of the season, Napoli are now seriously risking elimination in the league phase, and even a draw in the last home match against Chelsea on January 28 may not be enough.
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Conte showed his frustration for some of the choices made by Napoli in the summer, including the signings of Noa Lang from PSV and Lorenzo Lucca from Udinese. As a matter of fact both players are now on the verge of leaving the Azzurri, with Lang to join Galatasaray on loan and the Italian striker set to sign for Nottingham Forest before the end of the winter transfer window. Meanwhile, the Azzurri agreed to a deal worth $20 million with Hellas Verona to sign young star Giovane from the Italian team. Napoli’s winter moves suggest that the manager wasn’t happy about some of the transfers made by the club in the summer.
Conte against his past
Ironically, the two key matches for the Italian manager will be against two teams he coached over his career. In particular, his comeback in Turin is always special, although with varying meanings. At Juventus, Conte had his best years as a player from 1991 to 2004 where he won Serie A titles and even the Champions League final in 1996, despite suffering an injury in the final against Ajax that prevented him from playing in the UEFA 1996 Euro with the Italian national team. After he retired as a player in 2004, Conte started his coaching career and was appointed in 2011 by Juventus to become the new manager in what was also one of his first experiences as a Serie A manager. Conte immediately made his mark, launching a winning cycle at Juventus by clinching the Serie A Scudetto in his first season, followed by other two Serie A titles. He departed in 2014 following disagreements with the club over transfer strategy.
Juventus and Conte always had a special relationship and could even be reunited in the future some day, but things got more tense with some parts of the club and the fans in the past years. In June 2019, the former Juventus captain was unveiled as the new Inter head coach and the games he played in Turin were always heated and full of emotions on both sides. Despite his Inter spell, most of the Juventus fanbase remained on his side, knowing his work ethic and attitude, even when he agreed to join Napoli in the summer 2024. Juventus fans know Conte and they accepted the fact he could coach any team in the world after joining Inter, but they were expecting a comeback in the summer 2025, shortly after he won the Scudetto with Napoli.
Everything seemed set for his return to Turin. Juventus were searching for a new coach, Conte had just won the Scudetto in his first season at Napoli beating Inter in the title race and the Italian manager appeared increasingly unhappy at the club. However, in football things can change quickly. Despite comments from Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis that initially sounded like a farewell, he ultimately convinced Conte to stay and turn down Juventus’ offer, something that the majority of the fanbase felt like a betrayal.
With how quickly things can change, as they did in the summer of 2025, this week could prove decisive for Conte’s future. It doesn’t necessarily mean he will step down or be sacked if results go against him, but Conte is a deeply emotional and passionate manager, and feelings often play a key role in his career decisions. Failing to beat Juventus and Chelsea could influence his mindset in the months ahead, something we’ve seen before and that has previously led to him leaving a club at the end of the season. Napoli don’t need such uncertainty and neither does Conte himself.
How to watch Serie A Matchday 22
All times U.S./Eastern.
Friday, Jan. 23
Inter 6, Pisa 2
CBS Sports
Saturday, Jan. 24
Como vs. Torino, 9 a.m. (Paramount+)
Fiorentina vs. Cagliari, 12 p.m. (Paramount+)
Lecce vs. Lazio, 2:45 p.m. (Paramount+)
Sunday, Jan. 25
Sassuolo vs. Cremonese, 6:30 a.m. (Paramount+)
Atalanta vs. Parma, 9 a.m. (Paramount+)
Genoa vs. Bologna, 9 a.m. (Paramount+)
Juventus vs. Napoli, 12 p.m. (Paramount+)
AS Roma vs. AC Milan, 2:45 p.m. (Paramount+)
Monday, Jan. 26
Hellas Verona vs. Udinese, 2:45 p.m. (Paramount+)
