Next Napoli manager: Julian Nagelsmann, Rafa Benitez and the candidates to replace Luciano Spalletti at the Serie A champions

Talk of De Laurentiis turning to Julian Nagelsmann took many by surprise, but it does make some sense. Most importantly of all, he's available after being surprisingly sacked by Bayern Munich during the March international break - and what a disastrous decision that has proven to be. Furthermore, despite his dismissal, he is still regarded as one of the most interesting and innovative young coaches in the game today.

However, this one is unlikely to happen for one very important reason: money. Nagelsmann would demand a hefty pay packet and De Laurentiis appears unwilling to pay more than €6 million (£5.2m/$6.5m) net. It's doubtful that such a salary would satisfy a coach that rates himself as highly as many neutral observers.

Thiago Motta has come a long way since arousing suspicion and scepticism with talk of a goalkeeper-less 2-7-2 formation during his time in charge of Paris Saint-Germain Under-19s. Indeed, it's probably only a matter of time before the former Italy international is given one of the top jobs in European football, maybe even at the Parc des Princes - or another former stomping ground, San Siro...

However, right now, he's being linked with Napoli on account of the excellent work he's done in his first season at Bologna. Succeeding Sinisa Mihajlovic at the helm was always going to be a difficult job, for a variety of reasons, but Motta has turned the Rossoblu into one of the best footballing sides in Serie A.

He wouldn't just be an attractive option for De Laurentiis because of his style of play, though - he'd also be a less expensive appointment. Still, it feels like this opportunity hasn't quite come at the right time for the 40-year-old, who still has to prove he is as good a manager as he was a player.

The mastermind behind Atalanta's remarkable journey from provincial club to Champions League contenders, Gian Piero Gasperini has been in Bergamo for seven years now and, at 65, there is every chance that he will retire there.

However, like pretty much everyone else in Italian football, De Laurentiis holds Gasperini in the highest esteem and was ready to hire him a decade ago before former boss Walter Mazzarri decided to extend his stay in Naples for another season.

So, is Gasperini likely to leave his beloved Atalanta for Napoli? No. But it's easy to understand why De Laurentiis would be interested in a coach renowned for playing fantastic football with a mix of rejects and raw talents.

Roberto De Zerbi is understandably viewed as the ideal man to replace Spalletti. The pair share a similar view of the game and, as the former has previously proven at Sassuolo, and presently at Brighton, he is capable of achieving incredible results on a relatively small budget. There's also the fact that De Zerbi spent four years on Napoli's books during his playing days.

However, while De Zerbi appears destined to return to the Maradona as coach one day, we might be waiting a while. The Brescia native appears to be quite enjoying his experience in England and has just qualified Brighton for Europe. While some of his star players may leave the Amex Stadium this season, he is likely to stay put.

What's more, when he does eventually decide to depart, it could well be for one of the top jobs in the Premier League, given De Zerbi is currently earning ridiculously high praise from the likes of Pep Guardiola.

Vincenzo Italiano arrived at Fiorentina two summers ago, touted as calcio's next great coach having worked wonders at Spezia, where he earned a historic promotion to Serie A in his first season in charge, before then securing survival in his second - and all while playing good football.

After qualifying for Europe by taking seventh place in 2021-22, the Viola are set for a mid-table finish this time around. However, they're also in contention to win two trophies, with Fiorentina facing Inter in the Coppa Italia final on Wednesday before taking on West Ham in the UEFA Europa Conference decider on June 7.

Even if Italiano fails to win either, he's already lived up to his billing, which is why talk of a move to Naples is totally unsurprising. He pretty much ticks all the boxes for De Laurentiis - except for maybe one, star power. But two trophies in the next two weeks would arguably change that.

Italiano is under contract until 2024 but as he said himself earlier this week, "These cups conclude in Rome and Prague, I hope to continue celebrating there, and then we’ll see what happens..."

With Simone Inzaghi having turned Inter's inconsistent campaign around in the most sensational fashion, there now appears to be little chance of Antonio Conte returning to San Siro - unless of course the current coach decides to walk off into the sunset anyway because of all of the unfair criticism he received earlier this year.

However, with Massimiliano Allegri's future very much up in the air at Juventus, Conte could easily end up back in Turin. Much will depend on Champions League qualification and ongoing court cases.

Intriguingly, Conte is also being considered by De Laurentiis, who has the utmost respect for one of the Italian game's proven winners and it's worth noting that there has been contact in the past. The film producer is a big fan of strong characters, and they don't get much stronger than Conte. De Laurentiis is also believed to be drawn to the idea of installing a high-profile figure who could not only convince Napoli's main men to stay at the Maradona, but also attract other top players to the club.

There have, however, been questions raised over whether Conte is the right man for the role, stylistically, but, in reality, the major stumbling block here is money. After all, Conte was on a colossal contract at Tottenham and would have to significantly lower his wage demands to make his potential deal happen.

Could Rafa Benitez be about to return to Naples? It's a distinct possibility. De Laurentiis has an awful lot of time for the Spaniard, who won a Coppa Italia and Supercoppa during his previous spell in charge.

Tellingly, Benitez has also been quick to point out that not only is he on the look-out for "new challenges" after leaving Everton in 2022, he played his part in the development of some former Partenopei superstars.

"[Back in 2013], the president wanted to rebuild the team after selling [Edinson] Cavani to PSG," he told The Coaches' Voice. "It was a great challenge. We took on [Gonzalo] Higuain, [Raul] Albiol, [Dries] Mertens, [Jose] Callejon, [Pepe] Reina, [Duvan] Zapata and then, in January, Jorginho and [Faouzi] Ghoulam. We later took [Kalidou] Koulibaly for €7m from Genk and he was later sold at a very high price by Napoli. But the whole team at the time had grown. Many players went up in value."

And that's the kind of development that fits in perfectly with Napoli's new, sustainable approach to running the club. So, while Benitez's appointment is unlikely to excite the supporters, it really could happen.

In the past few days, Luis Enrique has emerged as a very serious candidate to take over from Spalletti. The Spaniard certainly has a lot going in his favour. For starters, he's looking for a job, having parted company with Spain after the 2022 World Cup, and then walking away from talks with Chelsea because of understandable concerns related to the London club's owners.

The former treble-winning Barcelona boss has also worked in Serie A previously, at Roma, and has strong ties to Italy. Indeed, he's spoken often and openly about returning to work there one day.

According to the Gazzetta dello Sport, De Laurentiis and Luis Enrique have yet to speak but given the Spaniard's status in the game, his availability, and the fact that he favours the kind of 4-3-3 formation that Spalletti employs at Napoli, 'Lucho' looks like a good fit - provided financial terms can be agreed.