Manna: Gilmour’s return near, but Lukaku and De Bruyne ‘question marks’

Napoli director Giovanni Manna confirms the Partenopei want to bring in attacking reinforcements in the January window; however, while Frank Zambo Anguissa and Billy Gilmour are close to returning, the situations of Romelu Lukaku and Kevin De Bruyne remain uncertain.

Manna released an interview with Corriere dello Sport on Wednesday, confirming that Rasmus Hojlund is expected to complete a permanent transfer from Manchester United.

The Napoli sporting director also spoke about the club’s strategy for the January transfer window: “We want to reward Conte and the players’ work by raising the team’s level, but without breaking the balance. We’ll try. January is always tricky. Last year, we sold our best player, and perhaps we still don’t have a valuable replacement.

“Anguissa and Gilmour’s returns are near, while Lukaku and De Bruyne are question marks, so we want to raise the bar, especially in attack. We are making assessments.”

De Bruyne underwent surgery in October after suffering a high-grade tear of the biceps femoris in the right thigh. Lukaku suffered the same injury in August and hasn’t yet made one single appearance for the Partenopei in 2025-26.

“De Bruyne will return to Naples after mid-January to begin athletic reconditioning,” Manna said.

As for De Bruyne and Lukaku’s recovery time, Manna added: “We had an idea, but then you need to understand how the body reacts at a certain age. Right now, the closest to return are Gilmour and Anguissa.

“We are proud of the work that Conte and the lads have done,” continued the Napoli director.

“I don’t agree when I hear that Napoli are the big favourites for the Scudetto, and not because we want to put pressure on somebody else. It’s an objective fact. I come from a very different reality, and it’s clear that there are structural gaps, which we try to fill with values that not many have, but it’s always enough.”

Antonio Conte won the Scudetto at Napoli in 2024-25 and Manna believes that the Partenopei boss is the best Italian coach.

“It’s not to give him a gift, but it’s what I see with my eyes. Energy, commitment and ability. He’s truly objective; every day, you must prove to be up to his standards,” he concluded.