In a year of title disappointment, shock departures, inspired captures and a stunning revival Napoli enter 2023 clear at the top of Serie A and flying high in Europe, writes Stephen Kasiewicz.
The big question is whether the Partenopei can end a quest spanning more than three decades to claim an elusive third Scudetto. Eight points ahead of Milan and unbeaten at the table summit the Campania club played a scintillating brand of football almost unsurpassed throughout Europe in the first half of the season.
A dazzling run to the Champions League round of 16, which included spectacular victories over much-touted Liverpool and Dutch giants Ajax, also had Napoli fans dreaming of a run to the latter stages of the world’s most competitive club competition.
The emergence of virtuoso Georgian wing magician Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, among other successful new recruits, has also ignited rather incongruous comparisons with undisputed club legend and greatest of all time Diego Maradona.
Yet there is more than sufficient evidence that coach Luciano Spalletti can successfully navigate the myriad challenges which await in the new year.
While biased Milan and Turin-based pundits resemble a rabble of loudmouthed soothsayers, the reality is that the Partenopei will begin 2023 in pole position with their rivals a few laps behind.
The crushing letdown of the previous campaign should act as a deterrent as Napoli look to make history once again.
Club captain Lorenzo Insigne stunned Italian football by agreeing on a pre-contract to join Major League Soccer club Toronto FC at the start of January, yet it didn’t derail Gli Azzurri in the first two months of the year.
Spalletti’s men looked destined to contend for the title as Spanish midfielder Fabián Ruiz struck a dramatic late winner at Lazio to put Napoli top of the table in round 27 of the championship.
Just a week later Milan claimed a vital win at the Stadio Diego Maradona thanks to Olivier Giroud’s second-half strike and the Partenopei never fully recovered.
In between Barcelona picked Napoli apart in the second leg of their Europa League play-off. A creditable draw at Camp Nou was followed by a 4-2 disaster at home as Barca sauntered to a shockingly straightforward win.
Everything fell apart in an awful April which shattered any Scudetto hopes. Despite an impressive victory at Atalanta, the damage was done in a winless three-game spell.
Napoli were defeated in a five-goal joust with Fiorentina and conceded late on in a 1-1 stalemate against Roma both on home turf. An inexplicable 3-2 loss at Empoli, in which the Campania club threw away a two-goal lead and goalkeeper Alex Meret was guilty of a woeful howler, ended any lingering title aspirations.
The Partenopei had to settle for third place despite beginning the campaign with eight consecutive wins and topping the table until the 16th round of fixtures.
Insigne made an emotional farewell, yet supporters were entirely unprepared for the shocking summer exits of legendary defender Kalidou Koulibaly and beloved forward Dries Mertens.
Optimism replaced disenchantment as Napoli embarked on a summer recruitment drive which made fans at least partially forget about the departure of the venerated trio.
Brilliant winger Kvaratskhelia, South Korean central defender Kim Min-jae, Uruguayan left-back Mathías Olivera, Italian international striker Giacomo Raspadori and Argentinian forward Giovanni Simeone all arrived in deals which excited the tifosi while not putting the club in the red.
As television studio geniuses with crystal balls pontificated that Napoli should be content to hover around the top six Spalletti proved everyone wrong in spectacular fashion.
The Partenopei sent an immediate signal of intent on the opening day of the new season, firing five past Hellas Verona in a thrilling 5-2 victory which included a debut goal for Kvaratskhelia.
The Georgian struck a double as Napoli thrashed Monza 4-0 and despite a couple of wobbles in consecutive draws against Fiorentina and Lecce the Gli Azzurri won every other league game to soar into first position in the Classifica.
Spalletti successfully integrated all the new signings into a free-flowing, ultra-attacking system as his side defeated Lazio, reigning champions Milan, Roma, and Atalanta in high-profile games, as well as overcoming Bologna, Udinese, and last season’s bogey team Empoli, among others.
Kim emerged as one of the finest defenders in the league, Olivera added versatility and an overlapping attacking threat at left-back while Raspadori and Simeone netted vital goals whenever called upon.
Nigerian forward Victor Osimhen raised his game to new heights, his world class winner at Roma a wondrous snapshot of a supremely confident striker.
The midfield trio of Stanislav Lobotka, André-Frank Zambo Anguissa and Piotr Zieliński dominated to such an extent that opponents scurried around like hapless characters in a video game chasing rivals on cheat mode.
Boasting a squad depth unrivalled anywhere else in Serie A the Partenopei were able to maintain their lofty standards despite injuries to key centre-back Amir Rrahmani, Anguissa and talisman Kvaratskhelia. The Georgian’s array of flicks, feints and fantasy footwork mesmerized everyone in Italian football yet he sustained a back injury which forced him out of the final three league games of the year. The 21-year-old rendered opponents spellbound as Napoli swept through the Champions League like unstoppable gladiators in battle.
They thrashed Liverpool 4-1 in a performance for the ages at the Maradona in early September and humiliated Ajax in Amsterdam at the beginning of October with a ruthlessly brilliant 6-1 display of breathtaking attacking football on the way to top spot in Group A.
Last season’s Europa League winners Eintracht Frankfurt await in the round of 16 but maintaining their lead in Serie A will be the priority before facing the Germans.
The unwanted World Cup interruption halted momentum, yet it seems increasingly likely it could actually work in Napoli’s favour.
Only defensive colossus Kim is a major injury concern ahead of a potentially season-defining trip to Inter on January 4.
Almost every other member of the Partenopei’s star laden squad is healthy as Spalletti has the luxury of leaving the likes of internationals Raspadori and Simeone on the bench.
Despite their remarkable unblemished opening there is far more to come from a team which looks more than equipped for the long haul.
Rather than reaching the peak of their potential already Napoli don’t look anywhere near finished yet.
More new arrivals will bolster an already formidable group in January, and while it would be foolish to make forecasts it seems everything is already in place for Napoli to make 2023 a year to savour.
@SKasiewicz
If Argentina and Maradona won WC 3 decades ago, Argentina won it this year and Napoli could win scdetto too, like Maradona’s Napoli. Sure, my Inter is priority. 😛