Napoli sack Internazionale-bound Simoni

Gigi Simoni, the coach-elect of the Italian Serie A club, Internazionale, has been dismissed by Napoli.

The Neapolitan club, officially reacting to a streak of disappointing results but mostly angered by Simoni's decision to leave the team at the end of the season, sacked the veteran coach on Monday and replaced him with the junior team trainer, Vincenzo Montefusco.

Simoni, 58, became the seventh coach to be discharged during the present campaign. His dismissal came a few days after Internazionale announced that he will coach the Milan team in the 1997-98 campaign. Simoni will replace Roy Hodgson, who is leaving Internazionale to coach Blackburn.

Napoli, who had climbed as high as to second place in the Italian League earlier this season, are 13th following a streak of 10 defeats, including a 1-0 home upset against Atalanta on Sunday.

Fabio Capello, the Real Madrid coach who arrived in Milan yesterday for a two-day visit, has been linked with a return to his former club, Milan. Capello, who left Milan to join the Spanish club last year, said he did not plan to meet the club president, Silvio Berlusconi, or any other club official during his stay. However, Italian sports dailies insisted this week that an agreement for Capello's comeback has been already reached.

"I returned to Milan to see my sons and to discuss some tax problems with my lawyers," Capello told reporters. "I won't discuss Milan's present problems. At the moment I'm only thinking of a successful end of season with Real. The [Spanish League] title is close, but not certain. Until a final decision is taken, I'll no longer discuss my possible transfer either in Italy or in Spain," he said.

The Italian coach, who led Milan to five league titles in five years, was welcomed by dozens of the club's fans who are anxious for him to return.

Capello, whose contract with Real Madrid runs until June 1998, will have to discuss the terms for breaking his contract to return to Milan where he would once again succeed Arrigo Sacchi.

Sacchi, who coached Milan before Capello until 1991, rejoined the Milan team last December, replacing the Uruguayan, Oscar Washington Tabarez.

However Milan's results, under Sacchi's direction, have been worse than under Tabarez and the team is 11th in the league table and out of contention for the title.