Article by Raffaele (@ItalianoCalcio)
When you think of the best attacks in Europe, who do you think of? Naturally you think of Messi-Suarez-Neymar and Cristiano Ronaldo-Bale-Benzema. Why wouldn’t you think of those; big names, star power, great production. Perhaps you think about Monaco’s young attack, which has received a lot of attention and praise. Here is an attacking combination you should put right up there; Mertens-Insigne-Hamsik-Callejon. That’s right, the Napoli quartet.
There is only one team in Europe’s top five leagues with four players to have scored at least 10 (league) goals. Can you guess which team that is? Napoli. Higuain was sold to Juventus this past summer and many wondered how would Napoli make up for the loss of Higuain’s record breaking 36 league goals. Simple answer; spread that production out among four players. Mertens leads the team in scoring with 21 goals. The Belgium international has stepped up big time given Milik’s injury. Remember, Milik was the striker brought in to replace Higuain. Mertens’ 21 league goals are by far a career best. Lorenzo Insigne ranks second with 14 goals. Something to keep in mind is Insigne did not score his first league goal this season until November 19th. Insigne’s 14 league goals are also a career best. Hamsik, the Napoli captain has 11 goals, his highest scoring total since the 2012-2013 season. Jose Callejon has 10 goals. The Spaniard has reached double figure goals now in 3 out of the 4 seasons he has been in Naples.
If you have not watched too many Napoli games this season, fortunately there is still time to do so. The way the team passes the ball around, the build-up play, and finishing ability is a delight to see. The players deserve a lot of credit, but so does their coach Maurizio Sarri. “Sarri Football” has become a term used in Italy to describe this Napoli team’s style of play. Every great quartet has a great conductor, and Napoli has Sarri.Maurizio Sarri has paid his dues. The Neapolitan has spent most of his career coaching in the lower leagues of Italian football. He took over at Empoli in 2012, and two seasons later the Tuscan club got promoted to Serie A in 2014. Not many gave Empoli a chance to stay up in Serie A, but Sarri guided them to a 15thplace finish and he eventually became Napoli’s new coach. Sarri was named Serie A Coach of the Year for the job he did last season, edging out Juve’s Max Allegri.
Napoli has scored the most goals as a team in Italy with 75this season. Only Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Monaco have scored more goals this season as a team. Last season, Napoli scored 80 goals, the most they have ever scored in Serie A. With 6 games left in this season, Napoli should easily break their club record. Napoli also could break the Serie A team scoring record in a single season. Napoli are averaging 2.4 goals per game, only Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and Monaco are averaging just as many or more.
Despite not having a “traditional number 9”, Napoli have one of the best attacks in all of Europe. The Napoli quartet playstogether with great harmony and have a conductor in Maurizio Sarri to thank. “Sarri Football” is one of the best shows to watch.
