Victor Osimhen is injured and expected to miss at least two of the three games against Milan in Serie A and the Champions League, but Napoli have done remarkably well in the striker’s absence before.
The Nigerian returned from international duty with a left adductor issue in his thigh and has been ruled out for at least a couple of weeks.
It means missing Sunday’s Serie A clash with Milan, while he is also a major doubt for the Champions League quarter-finals against the same opponent on April 12 and 18.
On paper, it is a huge loss for the Partenopei, as Osimhen is their top scorer this season with 25 goals in 29 competitive appearances.
However, the statistics suggest Napoli not only survive in his absence, but they positively thrive without their star man.
Osimhen already sustained a muscular injury that ruled him out for much of September and October, during which Napoli still emerged with seven wins out of seven in all competition.
Even the average goals scored per game improved from 2.4 with Osimhen to 3.1 without the striker.
He was present in all three of their competitive defeats this season, along with three draws and 23 victories.
In fact, when Napoli beat Milan 2-1 earlier this season in Serie A, Osimhen was again out of action and his replacement Giovanni Simeone scored the winner.