Sport

Benitez joins Napoli after leaving Chelsea

09:21 am on 28 May 2013

Former Inter Milan, Liverpool and Chelsea manager Rafael Benitez will return to Italy to take charge of Serie A club Napoli.

The Spaniard replaces Walter Mazzarri who quit after the team finished second behind Juventus in Serie A this season to qualify for the Champions League.

Benitez was in charge of Inter for the first half of the 2010-11 season after replacing treble-winning Jose Mourinho.

With the team lying a modest sixth in December of that season, his job was under threat, but he appeared to earn a reprieve when he led them to victory in the Club World Cup in Japan.

Benitez then angered Inter owner Massimo Moratti by demanding reinforcements and was sacked before Christmas.

He then remained out of coaching for nearly two years until Chelsea hired him to replace 2012 Champions League-winning Roberto Di Matteo in an interim capacity.

Benitez ended a seven-month spell at the London club earlier this month by winning the Europa League and finishing third in the Premier League, thereby qualifying for the Champions League.