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Mazzarri happy Napoli won Scudetto: I remind you - I was there the longest!

Former Napoli coach Walter Mazzarri was happy seeing the club win the Scudetto last season.

The 62 year-old admits he feels ready to return to management.

He told Il Corriere dello Sport: “Since (Aurelio) De Laurentiis became president, I have been the one who has been there the longest. I just want to say that I had a wonderful relationship with him. And if it had been for De Laurentiis I would have stayed for many more years, as is the custom in England.

“But, I also said at the time, after four years if you don't change all the players or don't change many of them, you become too predictable. It's also a question of language. I thought that was the time to leave.

“I'm a workaholic, when I work I'm a hammer, which is also why I gave myself breaks. He called me, at least at first, at 6 in the morning, 6.30 at the latest, and he did me a Favor. At 9 I was already at the pitch for training and the discussion had been full, complete.

“I had a direct relationship with him, I explained to him what I would do, in short we found an important synergy. It is possible that in Naples I felt a particular stress, after all I came from minor experiences, I had been with Acireale, Pistoiese, Livorno, Reggina, Sampdoria.

“I didn't have a 20-year career that could support me. I wasn't used to the pressure of a place like that. Fantastic years, though. I arrived and immediately broke Bigon's record. If I'm not mistaken, 16 useful results with a team that had finished in sixth last time.

“An incredible ride, the first year, then the second, then the third, then the fourth, we always grew and arrived in the Champions League. Maggio missed the goal to make it 5-1 in the last minute and then lost in extra time, missing many goals after an incredible match.

“That Chelsea won the Champions League. In the first year of the Champions League, when we faced Mancini's Manchester City, we were all rookies, including me. One nil for us, Kolarov equalised, in the end City did not qualify. It was the Napoli of Grava, Paolo Cannavaro and Aronica.

“They were all kids without a high-level CV, but they gave their all. We had a precise organisation, everyone made it their own. Zuniga came from Siena, he became a great player when I put him on the left. Growth and results can be combined.

“Cavani came from Palermo, he was 22 years old, he hadn't exploded at all, he often played out wide, rarely in the centre, they said he didn't see the goal. I made him grow, he became a champion.

“Hamsik had been signed by Brescia two years earlier, he hadn't yet scored 12 goals, he hadn't yet exploded in Serie A, he was a young boy to train. And Lavezzi, the same. Lavezzi was a blessing and a blessing, plus a little overweight.

“Thanks to the work done on Cavani and Lavezzi, they were able to get Higuain at Napoli. In short, in those four years I did a lot of good things. A special feeling with everyone in Naples, it stands the test of time, I can still notice it, in short they love me.

“The Napoli that I liked so much last year with Spalletti, I studied it by heart. I know all the movements they did, this is part of me. But it ends here. I haven't heard from anyone from Napoli. It's bullsh*t.

“Everyone would like to return to Napoli because they're a strong team, the club have become important. Naples is a fascinating place. If I were to have, as I had, the chance to return, I would like to find people willing to understand the football I intend to play.

“I like teaching, improving players, setting up serious work. Am I asking too much?"

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