According to the Daily Sports Daily, Naples considered introducing Neymar at the beginning of the year, but the defending Serie A champion finally chose De Bruyne.

Early this year, a bold idea came to the office of the club Naples. Club president De Laurentis, sporting director Manna and head coach Conte discussed the possibility of signing Neymar, although they knew the Brazilian star returned to Santos where his career began, and his contract was only six months left.

In the next few weeks, Manna fantasized about seeing the Brazilian superstar conquering fans with his dazzling dribbling and sprints at the Maradona Stadium, making the fans seem to see the team legend shining on the lawn again. However, over time, reason prevailed. De Bruyne's appearance allowed Naples to shift the target, and the opportunity to sign Neymar disappeared. When he learned that the Belgian would leave Manchester City after the contract ended, he immediately became Naples' first choice because the club believed Neymar could bring about unnecessary economic and tactical imbalances. One of the characteristics of Conte is that it tends to build a team-oriented team rather than relying on individual players in the team. This was demonstrated in the successful stages of Juventus, Chelsea and Inter, whose football philosophy is based on joint efforts and tactical structures, emphasizing collective oppression, defensive solidarity, and the dispersal of offensive capabilities.

Considering Neymar's history of frequent injuries in recent years, such as missing for months due to thigh problems this year, his impact on Naples may be more media effects than actual performance. In any case, Neymar finally decided to extend his contract with the Brazilian club, and De Bruyne quickly integrated into the team after joining and helped Naples to strive for a fifth Serie A title. After six rounds of Serie A, Napoli temporarily topped the table, although they were only on the same score as Roma, Conte was obviously satisfied with the team's existing lineup.