Dries Mertens has made history, as his goal against Inter this evening allowed him to surpass Marek Hamsik as Napoli’s all-time top scorer.
It is a wonderful way for the 33-year-old Belgian to celebrate his imminent contract extension at the Stadio San Paolo.
Mertens had been on a par with Hamsik after finding the net 121 times in the Partenopei jersey when the lockdown brought football to a halt for three months.
Dries Mertens has made history, as his goal against Inter this evening allowed him to surpass Marek Hamsik as Napoli’s all-time top scorer.
It is a wonderful way for the 33-year-old Belgian to celebrate his imminent contract extension at the Stadio San Paolo.
Mertens had been on a par with Hamsik after finding the net 121 times in the Partenopei jersey when the lockdown brought football to a halt for three months.
He took his tally up to 122 during this evening’s Coppa Italia semi-final against Inter, which was played behind closed doors in Naples.
Mertens has been at Napoli since leaving PSV Eindhoven in 2013 and become so beloved by the locals as to be given the most Neapolitan of nicknames, Ciro.
With tonight’s strike, Mertens has now scored 122 goals in 310 competitive appearances for Napoli.
He also contributed 73 assists during his Azzurri career.
Midfielder Hamsik took 520 official matches to reach 121 goals in the Napoli jersey.