September 30, 2022
The brief from today:
Bielsa comes to collect
The highly respected, but often mercurial coach, Marcelo Bielsa, is in the news today. Things had been relatively quiet regarding the Argentine since his departure from Leeds United in February. He has recently been approached by Santos, in Brazil, to take over as manager of the side, but unlike Santos being a potential future club for Bielsa, the Rosario native is making headlines regarding one of his previous teams: Marseille. In 2014, the Ligue 1 side recruited Bielsa on a two-year contract following his successful spell at La Liga side, Athletic Bilbao. Things started well in the south of France, with Marseille topping the table in the first half of Bielsa’s maiden season, with their eventual fourth place finish securing European football for the next campaign. It was in year two that things deteriorated, however, as immediately after losing the first match of the season, Bielsa suddenly resigned. As abrupt as this all appeared, the issues were already festering over the previous two months. According to Bielsa and his camp, Marseille’s administrative staff hadn’t honored a clause in his contract, which stated he would receive a 25 percent increase in pay following his first season. The whole summer came and went without the pay rise, and Bielsa opted to announce his departure following that loss to Caen. His lawyers have now appeared in court stating their arguments for €3 million in restitution. The figures that make up this number include: €2.8 million for the pay increase, €180,000 for the negative impact to his image, and €20,000 in psychological damages. The latter two claims are due to Bielsa and his legal representation’s belief that the story was publicized in a manner that painted him as the wrongful party, when in reality, the issue was Marseille allegedly reneging on an agreement made between both parties. The case has now been made, but the court’s ruling isn’t due until the end of January, almost eight years after the original incident.
Bielsa during his time as Marseille manager
Napoli looking to secure major partner
The often outspoken Napoli president, Aurelio de Laurentiis, is hoping to land another major partner from the Tech industry for the Serie A side. After agreeing a deal with Amazon last year for a sleeve sponsorship worth an initial €2 million per year, de Laurentiis is now courting Apple CEO, Tim Cook. The University of Naples hosted Cook this week as they selected him to receive an Honorary Degree in Innovation and International Management. Apple launched their first iOS Developer academy in Europe in Naples in 2016 with Tim Cook spearheading the decision. Taking advantage of Cook’s increased presence in the city in recent years, de Laurentiis has launched exploratory talks in the past regarding a partnership between the two brands. With the Apple CEO in town currently, however, it seems the Napoli patron has sought to escalate discussions this week. The club’s primary kit sponsor since 1998, Acqua Lete, currently pay Napoli €9 million per season for prime placement on the jersey. With the aforementioned Amazon deal making them the sleeve sponsor, it remains to be seen whether de Laurentiis is hoping for a jersey deal, or something else with Apple.