Goals from Scott McTominay and Romelu Lukaku earned Napoli victory over Cagliari to confirm them as Serie A title winners.
De Laurentiis told DAZN: “I feel relieved now.
“Saying four is good number, it’s not easy. We hope it is the start of a consistency that we are trying to take from the North of Italy to the South. It was not easy, but when I met (Antonio) Conte in the Maldives and many years ago we went swimming together, I was struck by his mentality.
“I approached him in November 2023 and asked him to come straight away, but very professionally, he said he didn’t build that team, so it was best to wait until June so then we could do something really special together.
“He did it, so I take my hat off to him.”
Coy on Conte's future
On the future of title-winning coach Antonio Conte, De Laurentiis was coy given some reports of tension between the pair.
“Never say never," he continued. "Coaches have their own character that must be respected and in my view you should never oblige them under iron-clad contracts.
"Napoli is Napoli, it deserves respect. If he wants to put himself at the disposal of the club the way he has done this season, then we say welcome, we are ready to follow him like a great leader.
“Next year, I would be very pleased if he made his mark in the Champions League, which since they modified the format has become even more important.”