At least 200,000 fans took part in the parade along the Naples seafront as the players and the Serie A trophy drove past in two buses.

Napoli Chairman Aurelio De Laurentiis has announced that the title-winning squad will be received by Pope Leo XIV at a special audience in the Vatican on Tuesday.

The Napoli team arrived on the seafront in a special boat and were welcomed by thousands of delirious fans in the football-mad southern Italian city before they embarked on the open-top bus ride.

The supporters sang to their heroes as flags were waved with joy.

There was also a flag on one of the buses dedicated to Daniele, a very young Napoli fan who died of cancer prematurely this season and for whom Cameroon midfielder Frank Anguissa wore a bracelet throughout the championship.

“My compliments to [coach] Antonio Conte,” Alberto Bigon, the coach of Diego Maradona’s second scudetto in 1990, told reporters.

Bigon agreed with the majority of commentators and pundits in expressing the forecast that the former Juve, Italy and Chelsea boss “will now leave Napoli”.

Conte has been closely linked to a job with Juventus if, as expected, Igor Tudor leaves despite leading the Bianconeri to third place in Serie A this season, having taken them over when they were sixth.

Former Juve boss Massimiliano Allegri has been strongly linked to replacing Conte in Naples.

Juventus and France legend Michel Platini, meanwhile, said at the Vialli and Mauro ALS charity golf pro-am tournament outside Turin that “players make teams great, not managers”.

Meanwhile, De Laurentiis again substantially ducked talk about Conte staying on as coach, telling fans they could be confident that Napoli would continue to prosper no matter who led them.

“The fans can rest assured, in the future there will always be a Napoli with the ability to have its say,” said Laurentiis to RaiSport from aboard the open-top bus to a question about the future manager given the serious doubts about Conte.

“Coaches have a contract and if they want to stay, we are very happy to continue this wonderful journey with them,” he said, reiterating what he had already said repeatedly in recent days.

Meanwhile, De Laurentiis confirmed Belgium and former Manchester City great Kevin De Bruyne was in talks to join the club.

“I connected with him on video, his is a fantastic family, even if the contract has not yet been signed,” he revealed.

“No news can be given until it is black and white.”

ANSA