Italy The first Serie A title in the post-Diego Maradona era came as a result of drastic changes that Napoli under owner De Laurentiis and coach Luciano Spalletti have made over the past two years.
Winning Serie A was once considered an impossible task for Napoli, in a context of limited finances and without a player "from another planet" like Diego Maradona - the inspiration that helped the team win the championship twice before in history (1987, 1990).
But that perception has changed this season. Visiting Naples recently, visitors felt like they were living in a festive atmosphere. On the balcony of an apartment facing the Diego Armando Maradona stadium, the bold declaration had been hung for weeks: “Napoli – Serie A champions 2022-2023”. The entrance to a corner bar where the Carabinieri – Italy’s national police force – sip coffee now has a heart-shaped hanging, lit by blue LEDs. A tricoloured kit with the number 3 – representing Napoli’s three Serie A titles in its 96-year history – hangs permanently above the bar. They are everywhere, fluttering in the wind like white and blue silks that line the streets of the town.
Rather than the fear of missing out, as they have done so many times over the past 30 years, Napoli have always been confident of winning Serie A. The gap between them and the chasing pack has often been in the double digits. Even when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Salernitana in the round of 32, which forced them to postpone their title celebrations at the Diego Maradona Stadium, they were not too disappointed. As coach Luciano Spalletti himself said after the match, the draw allowed the team and their fans to enjoy the feeling of victory for longer. That was what kept them warm in Udinese on the evening of May 4, where key striker Victor Osimhen scored the decisive goal to officially crown Napoli the champions.
The Origin of Resurrection
If there was a benefactor who helped Napoli reach their current glory, it could only be Aurelio de Laurentiis - Italian film producer and Napoli president. Growing up in Naples with a passion for Napoli passed down from his father who took him to watch the team's matches, De Laurentiis dreamed of buying Napoli. In 1999, a year after the club was relegated from Serie A to Serie B, he tried but failed.
Five years later, Napoli was in even more trouble when it went bankrupt and was declared bankrupt. De Laurentiis seemed shocked by the prospect. "What do you mean dissolved?", he said when he heard the news. And this time, the Italian film producer did not miss the opportunity, even though he had to give up his burgeoning Hollywood career, with "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow" - starring Angelina Jolie, Jude Law and Gwyneth Paltrow - in post-production and preparing for release, to fly back to Italy.
De Laurentiis even hid it from his wife and children to focus on his project to turn Napoli into a “phoenix”. He made a deal to buy the club that had just been declared bankrupt and was given a stack of papers. All that was left of Napoli was the brand, the name, nothing else. The old training ground in the town’s Soccavo neighborhood, nicknamed Paradiso (Paradise), where Maradona trained, was abandoned.
It was the first week of September 2004, with the season about to start. “We bought jerseys from the corner store, put the team together quite late and trained at the Ariston stadium in Paestum,” De Laurentiis recalls. “I knew nothing about football. I came from the film industry. I played basketball when I was at school.”
When De Laurentiis bought Napoli, they were playing in Serie C1 - the third tier of the Italian football pyramid. And in the first season of that revival, they came from the ashes and only missed out on promotion to Serie B after losing to Avellino in a play-off at the end of the season.
In the nearly two decades since De Laurentiis began, Napoli fans have seen their team return to Serie A, play in European competitions for the first time in 13 years, play in the Champions League for the first time and win the Coppa Italia three times under Rafa Benitez and Gennaro Gattuso. They have bought Pampa Sosa shirts, written songs about the trio of Marek Hamsik, Ezequiel Lavezzi and Edinson Cavani, and idolised Jesus Datolo for helping Napoli beat Juventus in Turin for the first time since 1988. Napoli tifosi have also cursed Gonzalo Higuain for betraying them by joining Juventus in the summer in which he equalled the Serie A goalscoring record, and have made Dries 'Ciro' Mertens - who went on to become the club's all-time leading scorer - their new idol.
But none of the above-mentioned generations or stars could help Napoli win Serie A, including the team under Maurizio Sarri that Pep Guardiola and Arrigo Sacchi had to watch live. They came very close to winning the 2017-2018 title with 91 points, but could not overthrow Juventus, who had dominated the league for the past decade.
There was a view that if this Napoli team couldn’t win the title, no one else could. “In the history of football, there are teams that define an era,” Sarri consoled himself. “Everyone remembers the Netherlands team from the 1970s, not the World Cup winners. I believe that people will remember this Napoli team in 20 years’ time.”
Napoli failed to play by the old mould of football from southern Italy, where clubs were often passionate, slick and innovative – especially under Luis Vinicio in 1975 – but lacked the ruthless, cold-blooded pragmatism of northern giants like Juventus, Inter or Milan. In that era, trophies and winning methods defined the culture war over the identity of Italian football, with the school of thought that favoured defensive, counter-attacking play as a guide to winning trophies gaining more support than the school of thought that championed the spectacular underdogs like Napoli.
The turning point with Spaletti
Even with Spalletti’s appointment, Napoli were still doubtful of their title ambitions. History has shown that there was a basis for this, with Spalletti’s Roma holding an advantage of around an hour in the title race on the final day of the 2007-08 season, only to be crushed by a more pragmatic Inter in the pouring rain in Parma. In the 2016-17 season, during Spalletti’s second spell in charge, Roma finished with 87 points and key striker Edin Dzeko was top scorer with 29 goals. But they still couldn’t topple Juventus.
De Laurentiis visited Spalletti's apartment in Milan on January 20, 2021. At the time, Gattuso was Napoli's coach and under tremendous pressure after winning just three of his seven games, while Spalletti was still being paid by Inter but not seen on the sidelines. Inter had previously spent nearly $30 million to fire Spalletti and his assistants just months after they had signed a new contract because they had helped the club return to the Champions League. Inter's board did not believe Spalletti could win the scudetto, and new CEO Beppe Marotta personally chose Antonio Conte.
Sacked by his brother Marcello’s death, Spalletti retreated to his family farm in Tuscany, where he brewed wine, rode horses and raised ducks, before being offered a job again. “When I first met De Laurentiis, he invited me to Napoli for a transition period,” the 64-year-old says. “The finances needed to be balanced, the squad had to be rejuvenated, and I had to get the team back into the Champions League after two years. To get on the right track, we had to play good football to motivate the players, because for the past two years, no one cared about them for the results.”
De Laurentiis, by his own admission, was caught up in the Covid-19 pandemic. The Napoli president paid a record $80 million fee for Victor Osimhen – a deal that is still under investigation by judges in Naples – without anticipating multiple lockdowns, fan bans, new Covid-19 variants and another failure to finish in the top four and qualify for the Champions League.
Gattuso's final game ended with Napoli missing out on Champions League qualification after a draw at home to a disheartened Verona in the final round of Serie A. With their fate in their hands, Napoli lost it and the mood of the fans dropped. Spalletti's first goal was to make the fans "love" Napoli again. At his inaugural press conference, the Italian coach spoke of Napoli reflecting the city through their style of play, "sfacciata" and "scugnizzo", fun, cheeky and clever, like 11 fugitives from art. On the back of the training shirts, Spalletti asked the staff to print the opening lyrics of his favourite Maradona song: "I'll be there for you. Don't give up. We have a dream in our hearts. That Napoli will be champions again".
In Spalletti's first season, Napoli made their fans dream again with eight wins from eight games. They didn't lose until a trip to the Giuseppe Meazza, against defending champions Inter. Piotr Zielinski put Napoli ahead, but things then fell apart.
Osimhen suffered a serious eye socket injury in a collision with Milan Skriniar and is out for several months. Three successive home defeats in Serie A have dampened enthusiasm. The African Cup of Nations has cost Napoli key players Kalidou Koulibaly and Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa for much of January, prompting a furious De Laurentiis to declare that he will not sign African players unless they promise not to leave the club mid-season.
Expiring contracts are another distraction. Lorenzo Insigne was photographed signing a contract with Toronto FC at a Rome hotel two days before the Juventus game. Dries Mertens, a fan favourite, admitted it was “strange” that the board did not want to renew his contract, despite him being willing to take a pay cut to stay at the club.
In early March, a 1-0 home defeat to Milan ended Napoli's title ambitions. "If we had won that game, I believe everything would have changed," Mertens recalled. A strange atmosphere had been created. Napoli were not dreaming of winning the title, but of qualifying for the Champions League, and they soon achieved that goal by finishing in the top four and 15 points clear of the chasing pack.
But there was a palpable sense of disappointment and missed opportunity. Spalletti's beloved Fiat Panda had been stolen, and a banner had been hung outside the stadium telling him he would only get it back if he left the club. "It all depends on the condition of the car," Spalletti joked, but he was not about to give up. "How many miles have they done on it and what state are the tyres in? If my Pino Daniele CD is missing, I won't get the car back."
In the penultimate home game of the season, a 6-1 win over Sassuolo, the boos were directed at De Laurentiis. Despite the president’s role in saving Napoli and his record-breaking transfers of Higuain ($43 million), Hirving Lozano ($50 million), Osimhen ($80 million), the ultras have always felt that De Laurentiis has not given enough money to the club.
Protests over ticket prices continued that season. Making a profit in 10 of the 16 Serie A seasons did not make De Laurentiis look good. It did create the perception that football was first and foremost a business, especially when football, not movies, accounted for 92% of De Laurentiis' Filmauro studio's revenue.
Summer Revolution 2022
As usual, fans equated cost-cutting – Napoli’s wage bill was reduced by 15% – with a reduction in ambition. So the sell-off of key players angered fans. When Spalletti showed up at the club’s annual summer training camp in the Dolomites, many fans booed him.
“Wake up,” they shouted.
“Shut up,” Spalletti replied. “Call security and shut these people up, will you?”
Spalletti was listing the players who had left, including first-choice goalkeeper David Ospina, highly-rated left-back Faouzi Ghoulam, elegant and long-range midfielder Fabian Ruiz and club legends Kalidou Koulibaly, Lorenzo Insigne and Mertens.
“Nobody believed us,” De Laurentiis says. “Maybe a few did, but not enough to go against the tide of public opinion that was unhappy with Napoli’s transfer window. Hardly anyone knew any of the new signings.” They were Kim Min-jae, a centre-back from Fenerbahce, and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, a little-known winger from Dinamo Batumi who went on to become a sensation in European football this season. “A Georgian and a Korean. It sounded like the beginning of a joke,” De Laurentiis laughs.
But it was these "unfamiliar" names that lifted Napoli and broke the post-Maradona title curse. Opponents could only cling to Napoli until October 2022, before Spalletti's team opened up an eight-point gap before the break to make way for the 2022 World Cup. This gap widened to double digits halfway through.
Any concerns from a 1-0 defeat to Inter in their first game after the 2022 World Cup were quickly dispelled by their biggest win over Juventus since 1990, a memorable 5-1 demolition. Napoli dominated the tournament and closed in on Torino’s records from the late 1940s for margin of victory and number of rounds taken early, when they were officially crowned champions.
As Napoli rose, their rivals also fell back inexplicably . Defending champions Milan could not maintain their form and quickly fell behind in the scudetto race. Inter lost the championship in the final round of last season and received great confidence with the return of Romelu Lukaku, but failed to meet expectations. Turmoil continued to hit Juventus. Even if they were given back 15 points, coach Max Allegri's army was not considered a match for Napoli.
For a city that has often faced hardship, Napoli have enjoyed an unusually easy season. They didn’t need a leader to stand up for them against the discrimination Napoli faced, or a magical Maradona in his prime. Spalletti’s team simply played well and won the title.
By parting ways with Koulibaly, Insigne and Mertens, Napoli seemed to have lifted the emotional burden of missing out on the title. The team had freshness, courage and the element of surprise. They continued to have the best defense in the league, but they went in a different direction. In goal, Alex Meret rarely carried the ball forward like Ospina. The back four pushed higher and took on more responsibility for the ball. Mario Rui, who looked like a supporting actor in "Pirates of the Caribbean", was even considered a number 10 at left-back.
"Have you seen Kim?" Spalletti asked legendary centre-back Giorgio Chiellini during a chat. "He's a monster. When he sees danger, he can accelerate everything he does. He always gives his all. At the Castel Volturno training ground, I had to stop him from playing against the reserves." According to the Napoli head coach, Kim is currently the best centre-back in the world.
The midfielders complement each other perfectly. Napoli are the only Italian club to average more than 60% possession and pass more than 600 times a game. Giving the ball to diminutive Slovakian Stanislav Lobotka is like putting it in a safe. "Lobotka gives us the chance to attack the spaces," Spalletti said of his player. "He's like Iniesta. Lobotka looks vulnerable, but then he escapes and accelerates."
Napoli's attacking style has also changed this season . Last season, players like Insigne and Ruiz tended to score from distance. Only Man City (15 goals) scored more from outside the box than Napoli (13). This season, Napoli's long-range shots have dropped by 20% and only Kvaratskhelia has scored once.
The explanation? First of all, Kvaratskhelia dribbles differently than Insigne. The Georgian is good with both feet and so instead of just cutting across goal and shooting with his right foot, he can accelerate, break into the box, draw fouls or pass the ball to a teammate with his left foot.
Second, Napoli have Osimhen - a powerful striker with the ability to run and the height - qualities Mertens lacks - to position himself and fight in the air. As a result, Napoli have crossed the ball 30% more than last season and scored 17 goals from headers by the time they were crowned champions.
Against such a style of play, opponents have to choose between two approaches. But if they sit deep, Napoli will get the ball to Kvaratskhelia, who will unsettle the defence, through balls or crosses for Osimhen. If they push forward, Napoli will hit the ball long for the Nigerian striker to exploit the space. Napoli's versatility is also reflected in the 22 goals scored from set pieces.
Even without Osimhen - the first African to win Serie A's Golden Boot - Napoli have had little trouble. The strikers who replaced Osimhen have scored 15 goals when given the chance, some of them crucial.
When Osimhen was withdrawn in the 4-1 Champions League group stage defeat, Giovanni Simone came on and scored immediately. The Argentine also scored the winner against defending champions Milan at the San Siro. Giacomo Raspadori led the attack in a 6-1 demolition of Ajax in Amsterdam, and more importantly, an injury-time goal in Turin on 23 April to help Napoli beat Juventus in both Serie A legs for the first time since 2009-10.
The reception Napoli received back at Capodichino in the early hours of the following morning offered a glimpse of the extravaganza that would await them once they were crowned champions. A convoy of motorbikes trailed the team bus like a swarm of wasps in the wake of their queen. A mock funeral was held for all the other Serie A teams, with Milan, Inter and Juventus scarves placed on the coffin.
The achievement was made sweeter by the fact that it angered Milan's technical director Paolo Maldini and Juventus coach Max Allegri. "Well done," Allegri shouted after Napoli won. "You've won the scudetto." But a scudetto in Napoli is worth 10 times more than in Turin and the southern Italian city will be partying all summer.
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