MY ACCOUNT
It is 32 years since Napoli last won the Serie A title but the long wait for the football-crazy Neapolitans could finally come to an end this season.
Nigerian forward Victor Osimhen has fired the Partenopei into contention, playing a talismanic role last seen in Diego Maradona’s time in Naples.
Ahead of this afternoon’s encounter with Fiorentina, we look back at Napoli’s golden era and their current generation of talent.
Magical Maradona
You only have to check out the name of the club’s home stadium to see the legacy from their previous league successes, when they were led by a football icon.
Maradona powered Napoli to their first league title in 1987 before helping the club clinch a second in 1990.
The World Cup winner spent seven glorious seasons in Italy, also assisting his team to Coppa Italia and UEFA Cup triumphs.
The passing of the Argentinian superstar in 2020 saw the Italian giants change the name of their famous Stadio San Paolo to the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona.
His blend of passion and brilliance left an indelible mark on the Campanian’s fervent fanbase.
Nigerian ace
No longer is Serie A known for its defensive football, with teams shutting up shop from early in a match to secure a valuable point.
Of Europe’s top five leagues, Serie A is second — behind the Bundesliga — for the most goals scored and the majority of top Italian sides now have exciting forward lines.
Napoli’s Osimhen is the club’s top scorer with 11 league goals so far this term, following on from the 10 he bagged during his debut season in Naples.
Going into this afternoon’s home clash with La Viola, the 23-year-old has scored four goals in his last two appearances.
Importantly, six of his 11 strikes have been the game’s opening goal.
The striker missed last week’s win at Atalanta through suspension but in his absence, the experienced Lorenzo Insigne stepped up to score the opening goal in a 3-1 success.
Favourable fixtures
With seven league games remaining, a look at the run-in gives Napoli fans every right to be optimistic.
Fiorentina’s visit is one of only two matches against teams in the top eight — the other is also at home, against Roma next weekend.
Furthermore, their last two matches of the season come against teams in the bottom six, with Luciano Spalletti’s men set to host second-bottom Genoa before travelling to 15th-placed Spezia on the final day of the season.
But with fellow title rivals AC Milan and Inter Milan enjoying good recent unbeaten runs, the race for the Serie A crown is set to go down to the wire.
