The news is abuzz about Napoli bringing in Cristiano Giuntoli to replace Riccardo Bigon as sporting director. The "miracle man" of Carpi oversaw two promotions for the biancorossi to get them to Serie A for the first time, and he did it with almost no budget to work with. Giuntoli's work has been incredibly impressive -- but he didn't do it alone.
Alongside Giuntoli were two men: his chief scout Giuseppe Pompilio and academy director Roberto Canepa. According to Sky Italia, both men are very likely to join Giuntoli in Naples in similar positions. It makes sense -- both Pompilio and Canepa have worked with Giuntoli for a number of years and know him and his thought process well. If the scouting and player development staffs don't know the thoughts and needs of the sporting director, it can cause problems that reverberate throughout the club.
What this means for the men currently in the roles Pompolio and Canepa would fill is probably not great, though. Current scouting chief Maurizio Michelli and his top assistant, Marco Zunino, were both likely to join Bigon at Hellas Verona, but they probably would have preferred at least having the option of staying in their roles with Napoli if they so chose.
Gianluca Grava's position is a little less clear-cut. As the current head of Napoli's academy and development system, he'd be replaced by Canepa, but the former club captain and defensive star is still much-loved by both the fanbase and president Aurelio De Laurentiis. It's hard to see him leaving, but it's also hard to see what role he'd fill for Napoli now, especially as he was rumored to be considered for the job Giuntoli is now going to fill. Given Napoli's defensive woes, perhaps there's room on Maurizio Sarri's staff for Grava, but his future seems very much up in the air right now.
Regardless, it's nice to see things taking shape so quickly. Napoli need to have Giuntoli's scouting team in place as soon as possible in order to get on with their summer. The next few months will be crucial for the future of the club -- if Giuntoli nails it, he could become a legend in Naples.