Napoli legend Marek Hamsik discussed his plans for the future, his bond with the city of Naples and the departures of various mainstays in the summer.
The Slovakian midfielder spent over a decade with the Partenopei from 2007 to 2019, becoming their all-time record appearance holder in the process. Hamsik, sporting his iconic mohawk haircut, made 520 appearances across all competitions for Napoli, scoring 121 goals and providing 103 assists.
Speaking to DAZN, Hamsik first discussed if he’d be willing to return to Napoli in the future.
“Why not! With De Laurentiis I have a very good rapport, I also spoke with him recently and we talked about going back to Napoli after my playing career.
“We spoke between January and March, he told me to call him when I finish playing to talk about our future.”
The 35-year-old Slovakian midfielder then opened up about his relationship with the city and people of Naples.
“During my years at Napoli there were many teams that wanted me, the first was Milan, then Inter and then Juventus. We made a few calls with Nedved, but I didn’t even think about it.
“I never had the urge to leave, I was happy and my family too, so I always renewed.
“The more the years went by, the more the fans loved me; if the call from China had not come, I would have stayed there for life.”
He commented on the departures of various Napoli fan favourites in the summer and the introduction of the new arrivals.
“It’s incredible to see that the three most important players left all together. From this point of view, it was a shame for the fans, but if we look at the reverse side of the coin, great players like Kim, Kvara, and Osimhen have arrived.
“Kvara I didn’t expect him like this, I think he surprised everyone, he has incredible dribbling simplicity.”
Finally, Hamsik joked about Napoli’s chances of winning the Scudetto this season.
“You don’t say, we are superstitious. They are off to a great start though, I hope they will start again like that when the season starts again.”
Hamsik is currently plying his trade in Turkey with Trabzonspor, where his contract expires in June. He emotionally retired from the Slovakian national team back in November, playing 89 minutes of a friendly with Chile.