Lobotka agent reassuring to Napoli: ‘Conte like a father to him’

Stanislav Lobotka’s agent has rushed to insist his comments about Antonio Conte and wanting to leave Napoli were ‘taken out of context’ from a podcast. ‘Conte is like a father to him.’

Although the statements were made on October 21, they have just filtered through to the Italian media today via Sport 24.

Coupled with Lobotka’s own mention of how incredibly demanding Conte’s training methods are at Napoli, they sent shockwaves through the peninsula.

Radio CRC therefore contacted agent Branislav Jasurek, who was eager to set things straight, noting inflection was missed in the version presented by Sport 24 in Slovakia.

“I was very surprised, because the phrases were taken completely out of context,” assured the representative.

“It is true that I am part of a podcast in Slovakia, where we talk about the national team and various players. I spoke about Lobotka in very positive terms during that episode.

“Towards the end, I said that it was tough to work with Antonio Conte because he is a very demanding coach, but I added it was positive because he is a winner. I then joked and said Lobo might be tired and push me for a transfer in the summer, but it was clearly a joke.

“Everyone on the podcast realised that, seeing as I am his agent and therefore every transfer is a ‘deal’ for me. Anyone who had listened to the podcast in the original language would recognise it was just a joke.

“I can also assure everyone knows Conte is like a father to Lobotka, and that rapport will never change. I am sure they will win many more trophies together.”

Lobotka has been at Napoli since his €24m transfer from Celta Vigo in January 2020 and is currently under contract until June 2027, with the club having an option to extend for one additional year.

“Stanislav has the same rapport with Napoli that Marek Hamsik did, he sees it as a second home, and bought a house there. He proves his commitment every week, often twice a week, and this is what really matters,” continued Jasurek.

“He was already Champion of Italy twice with Napoli and fully believes he can win the title a third time. He also has Champions League dreams with this club. He is 30 years old, this is when he wants to keep lifting silverware, and he is in the right club to achieve that.”

Where Jasurek was perhaps not entirely joking was when he complained that Napoli had invested in new players, but kept starting Lobotka in practically every game, leading up to an injury on international duty.

“Napoli invested well and brought in new players. That’s why I don’t understand why Lobotka had to play three difficult matches in eight days before international duty,” added Jasurek on the podcast.

“They could’ve given him a little rest, so he would’ve been available to play for Slovakia in Northern Ireland.”

During his absence, Billy Gilmour stepped up to take the midfield reins, until the Scotland international sustained an injury too.