Victor Osimhen threw his arms to the sky as the final whistle went, then ran toward the man who had blown it. He waved an angry finger at the referee Federico La Penna, demanding to know why the match had been stopped while an attack was ongoing. Napoli were engaged in one final, futile, attempt to break a goalless stalemate against Verona. The crowd at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona shared loudly in his indignation.
The dropped points hardly mattered to Napoli, who still finished the weekend 14 clear of Lazio at the top of Serie A with eight games remaining. Yet this was a window into the Partenopei’s state of being as they prepare for a season-defining Champions League quarter-final second leg at home to Milan on Tuesday night.
First the good: Osimhen’s presence on the pitch was an uplifting sight for anybody hoping Napoli can overturn the one-goal deficit. This was his first game back from the abductor injury he suffered last month, and in 20 minutes on the pitch he produced his team’s best chance: a searing half-volley from the edge of the box that crashed against the underside of the bar.
And then there were the supporters. Ultras had declared themselves on strike at the start of this month, standing in silent protest through a 4-0 league defeat to Milan. Their grievances were many, and not uniformly held. Some were angriest about security arrangements at the stadium, ranging from restrictions on flags and instruments to a requirement for fans to join a membership scheme to buy tickets. Others were stirred to action by rising prices for Champions League games.
All of this was underpinned by long-standing accusations against the owner, Aurelio De Laurentiis: that he did not care enough about their team or their city. He was born in Rome, and in 2018 took ownership of a second club, Bari, through his media company Filmauro. His son Luigi is president there, yet Aurelio was suspected of having mixed loyalties.
There are two sides to this story. Looking at the budgets and balance sheets of Serie A’s top sides, we can say objectively that Napoli have overperformed under De Laurentiis without trying to live beyond their means. The club he restored from bankruptcy in 2004 returned to the top flight three years later and has re-established itself firmly among the elite.
Napoli’s 13 consecutive seasons playing in European competition is the longest active streak among Serie A clubs. De Laurentiis had hired such influential managers as Carlo Ancelotti and Maurizio Sarri, and signed talented players such as Gonzalo Higuaín, Edinson Cavani and Dries Mertens all before getting to the current, magnificent side.
For Luciano Spalletti, the whole argument is an unwanted distraction. The Napoli manager threatened to resign if the stands were silent again for the return leg against Milan, saying: “To see the Diego Armando Maradona like this for a team who are winning the league after 33 years is something I will never understand … [if it happens again] I will quit this bench and I will leave.”
Those words seem to have achieved the desired reaction. On Saturday, De Laurentiis shared a photo on Twitter of himself together with Ultra leaders and the message “We are Napoli. President and fans united for victory!” It was reported that compromises had been reached over security measures at the stadium and relaxing the rules on who could buy tickets.
The newspaper Il Giornale defined it as a “sceneggiata” – a carefully stage-managed scene. Italian media agencies reported just a day earlier that De Laurentiis was being assigned a police escort in response to rising tensions and threats of physical violence. Politicians as high-ranking as Italy’s minister of the interior, Matteo Piantedosi, became involved in brokering the peace.
Not everyone was happy with the outcome, with De Laurentiis now accused of surrendering to bullies, but Spalletti simply hopes his team can put the distraction behind them and enjoy full-throated support. Napoli need a lift from somewhere. They have scored 66 goals in Serie A this season – 17 more than their closest rivals – yet have failed to find the net in three of their last four games.
There were mitigating circumstances against Verona. Spalletti swapped out five members of the team who faced Milan at San Siro, among them Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, while Osimhen was fit only for a brief cameo. Verona are 18th in the table and fighting for top-flight survival. They kept all 11 men behind the ball for almost the entire 90 minutes and wasted time at every opportunity.
That plan almost paid off more handsomely, with the substitute Cyril Ngonge racing clear on a rare breakaway in stoppage time only to send a feeble shot off target. The likes of Brahim Díaz and Rafael Leão might not be so forgiving if a similar opportunity comes their way on Tuesday night.
Neither player featured in Milan’s 1-1 draw away to Bologna, Stefano Pioli making it clear where his priorities lie as he rotated all 10 outfield starters. “We’ve suffered from playing twice a week this season,” he said. “Three games in six days is difficult, especially when you have a Bologna side playing well in between two Champions League games.”
To get a draw, in the circumstances, was actually quite impressive. Bologna have been surging under Thiago Motta and took the lead in the first minute through Nicola Sansone. Still, the result is damaging. Lazio and Roma both won 3-0, against Spezia and Udinese respectively. If the Italian Olympic Committee were to overturn Juventus’s 15-point penalty at their appeal hearing on Wednesday, Milan would drop out of the top four.
Inter are already behind their city rivals, in fifth, and lost at home to Monza on Saturday. Yet the former Italy goalkeeper Luca Marchegiani defended their manager Simone Inzaghi when it was suggested that missing out on next season’s Champions League could hurt the club more than a quarter-final defeat in this year’s competition.
“Are we joking?” he asked on Sky Sport. “Is a person supposed to sacrifice their Champions League dream because their club is mismanaged to the point where it is depending on a fourth-place finish to survive?”
Italian clubs are not alone in this struggle. Only two of the eight teams playing in the Champions League quarter-finals – Manchester City and Real Madrid – won their domestic fixtures last weekend. In a season with a World Cup wedged in the middle, it is hardly surprising that burnout has become a factor in the spring.
This is why Spalletti knows the atmosphere could make the difference in Naples on Tuesday, supporters holding the power to push his players that little bit further. Napoli have been the best team in Italy this season, yet still need to find another gear against a Milan side they have not beaten at home since 2018.
Friday: Cremonese 1-0 Empoli, Spezia 0-3 Lazio. Sat: Bologna 1-1 Milan, Inter 0-1 Monza, Napoli 0-0 Verona. Sun: Lecce 1-1 Sampdoria, Roma 3-0 Udinese, Sassuolo 1-0 Juventus, Torino 1-1 Salernitana. Monday fixture: Fiorentina v Atalanta.
“Our players deserve the support for everything they have done this year,” said Spalletti on Saturday. “If we win this Scudetto we will make history, we will be marked onto the walls of this city, we will all become Maradona.”
All true, but right now everyone’s focus lies on a different competition. Not even Maradona ever lifted Napoli to a Champions League quarter-final, so the Partenopei are already in uncharted territory. They hope Osimhen and a stadium that rediscovered its voice can carry them further still.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Napoli | 30 | 45 | 75 |
| 2 | Lazio | 30 | 29 | 61 |
| 3 | Roma | 30 | 16 | 56 |
| 4 | AC Milan | 30 | 12 | 53 |
| 5 | Inter Milan | 30 | 14 | 51 |
| 6 | Atalanta | 29 | 13 | 48 |
| 7 | Juventus | 30 | 22 | 44 |
| 8 | Bologna | 30 | 2 | 44 |
| 9 | Fiorentina | 29 | 2 | 41 |
| 10 | Sassuolo | 30 | -5 | 40 |
| 11 | Torino | 30 | -5 | 39 |
| 12 | Udinese | 30 | 0 | 39 |
| 13 | Monza | 30 | -6 | 38 |
| 14 | Empoli | 30 | -12 | 32 |
| 15 | Salernitana | 30 | -16 | 30 |
| 16 | Lecce | 30 | -10 | 28 |
| 17 | Spezia | 30 | -23 | 26 |
| 18 | Verona | 30 | -19 | 23 |
| 19 | Cremonese | 30 | -27 | 19 |
| 20 | Sampdoria | 30 | -32 | 16 |
