While Lionel Messi may have left an indelible mark on the year in soccer after winning the World Cup, the 2022–23 season has Diego Maradona’s legacy written all over it.
Thanks largely to Messi’s heroics in Qatar, Argentina added a third star to its crest in the nation’s first World Cup triumph since Maradona led the side to glory in 1986. And now that the domestic season is starting back up, Napoli is in pole position to win its third Serie A title with an eight-point lead atop the table.
The last time Napoli won the Scudetto was 1990, when Maradona led the charge. In a year when Argentina won the World Cup, a Napoli title could make this the year of Maradona—and just like in Argentina, the streets of Naples and the stadium that shares Maradona’s name would be in for an epic celebration where his image would be ubiquitous.
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Over the past decade, Napoli has usually hovered near the Serie A podium, but always managed to miss out. Its peak years came with second-place finishes in 2017–18 and ’18–19, led by coaching maestros in Maurizio Sarri and Carlo Ancelotti. But the run also came during Juventus’s iconic set of nine straight Serie A titles.
Following Ancelotti’s departure for Real Madrid, Napoli finished seventh and fifth its next two seasons under Gennaro Gattuso, before Luciano Spalletti took over as manager. Spalletti brought stability and led the squad back into the Champions League with a third-place finish last year. Yet this summer, the remaining stars of that era—Dries Mertens, Lorenzo Insigne and Kalidou Koulibaly—left the club, along with star midfielder Fabián Ruiz, leading to plenty of backlash from the club’s dedicated fan base.
Much of the fury was directed at Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis, who came under fire for saying he would no longer sign African players unless they agreed to not play in the African Cup of Nations during the European winters.
Further elevating the offseason tension was the fact that the club pocketed more than it spent over the summer while its signings failed to inspire fans, as they ranged from the English second division to leagues on the fringes of Europe, like Turkey and Georgia.
Yet it is that very transfer business that has spearheaded Napoli’s success this season. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia has captivated the country and Champions League after arriving from Georgia, where he played briefly after leaving Russian side Rubin Kazan. With six league goals, five assists and highlight-reel footwork, the 21-year-old’s debut has led many to label him “Kvaradona.”
Only his teammate in forward Victor Osimhen can match Kvaratskhelia’s 11 Serie A goal contributions, as the Nigerian international leads the league with nine goals. But it is the club’s stalwart defensive setup that has led the way. Defensive midfielder André-Frank Zambo Anguissa arrived from Fulham and has proven to be one of the league’s best signings, while summer arrival Kim Min-jae looks to be a shoe-in for Serie A’s defender of the year.
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The undervalued signings have now proven to be bona fide stars, leading Napoli to its current eight-point cushion in first. With Spalletti guiding the team, the club embarked on its current 11-match league win streak. But more incredible is the fact that Napoli is the only side in Europe’s top-six leagues yet to lose a league match—it’s only loss of the season came against Liverpool on the final Champions League match day with Napoli already having won its group.
Napoli’s success, however, has come with one major caveat: While it has already defeated defending champion AC Milan, it has yet to face title rivals Inter Milan and Juventus this season. All of that changes in January, starting with a massive match against Inter Milan to restart the Serie A season Wednesday.
“We aren’t heading into this game and the ones afterwards with any thoughts about our position in the table or any statistics linked to being unbeaten,” Spalletti said during Tuesday’s press conference.
“We’re fully aware of what we’re capable of on the pitch. Our style of play is key because when you analyze tomorrow’s game and the journey that awaits us, what we’ve done so far isn’t enough and what really matters is what we do from tomorrow onwards.”
Along with those showdowns, Napoli must also take on Roma, a local derby against Salernitana and Coppa Italia competition before February brings the Champions League knockout stage, which starts with a last-16 meeting against defending Europa League champion Eintracht Frankfurt. In a year that seems split into two seasons, Napoli will be asking the same question as Arsenal: How do you regain that pre–World Cup momentum during a long-awaited title run?
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At least the club will have form and fitness on its side. Napoli had fewer players at the World Cup than title competitors Juventus, AC Milan and Inter Milan. Meanwhile, none of Napoli’s players advanced past the round of 16 in Qatar, and only Kim (South Korea) and Piotr Zieliński (Poland) advanced to the knockout stage, meaning the club has had plenty of time to reintegrate its key players.
That, in itself, will be a boost to Spalletti. But the real challenge will be keeping the squad even-keeled amid the city and fanbase’s now-soaring expectations.
“My real dream is to see this city go wild with joy,” Spalletti said. “I know that everyone is talking about the Scudetto, but my real obsession isn’t winning it for myself, but to see Neapolitans explode with joy.”
Just 15 games in, the Serie A season is not even halfway complete. But if Spalletti and Napoli follow through, the city will indeed go “wild” with joy, for Maradona and Kvaradona, alike.
