Next-Level Napoli
Napoli blew away the competition with a dominant campaign as they ended a staggering 33-year wait to lift the Serie A title. Stephen Kasiewicz recounts their success in the story of the Italian top-flight in 2022-23.
Napoli captured an unforgettable third Serie A crown as their rivals collapsed in a season punctuated by another scandal involving Italy’s biggest club. Counted out as also-rans after losing a clutch of key players, Luciano Spalletti’s team wasted no time in building a substantial lead and ultimately sauntered to an astonishing first Scudetto in 33 years.
Title favourites Milan and Inter were unable to match their fine Champions League showings as they stuttered badly in domestic football, while Juventus were plagued by controversy off the field. The Bianconeri were deducted points for financial irregularities connected to the inflated value of player transfers, only to have them restored on appeal and then partially taken away again. Amid the chaos elsewhere, Napoli emerged as clear and deserved winners.
Captain Lorenzo Insigne, defensive stalwart Kalidou Koulibaly, iconic forward Dries Mertens and midfielder Fabian Ruiz all departed the Partenopei before the campaign.
Replacements Kim Min-jae, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Giacomo Raspadori and Giovanni Simeone were not expected to elevate Napoli beyond a Champions League berth. After all, these were rather unheralded names compared to the ones who passed through the exit door.
Yet with a healthy Victor Osimhen terrorising defences and Georgian wing genius Kvaratskhelia bamboozling opponents with flashy footwork, subtle feints and spectacular goals, the Campania club unexpectedly surged to a historic championship victory. Napoli leapt to the top of the table in the seventh round of fixtures in mid-September 2022 after defeating reigning champions Milan 2-1 at San Siro and from there, they never relinquished first place. In fact, they never even looked likely to be overtaken.
In Spalletti’s entertaining, attack oriented 4-3-3 system the Gli Azzurri smothered everyone into submission. South Korean international Kim dominated in the centre of defence, indefatigable captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo dictated play from the right flank, while the all-action Stanislav Lobotka and tireless André-Frank Zambo Anguissa were all-encompassing men in the middle.
Spalletti placed a premium on cultivating and exploiting space. The forward tandem of Osimhen and Kvaratskhelia frequently found room in the right areas as Napoli thrillingly flattened all their competitors. They defeated every team in Serie A in a season for the first time in their history, all while playing an enchanting offensive brand of football.
Napoli were at their most captivating best in a 5-1 annihilation of old nemeses Juventus at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in January. The Old Lady couldn’t contain Osimhen who struck twice with Kvaratskhelia, Amir Rrahmani and Elif Elmas all on target to send Spalletti’s men nine points clear of Milan at the table summit.
As the chasing pack lagged in the distance Napoli extended their points advantage into double figures and claimed the title with five games to spare with a 1-1 draw at Udinese, to sit a staggering 16 points clear of Lazio.
It sparked wild celebrations in the Campanian capital and across Italy as the Partenopei finally emulated the Diego Maradona inspired championship winning teams of 1987 and 1990.
Although never credible challengers, Lazio’s possession-based game under coach Marizio Sarri was at times captivating and devastatingly effective. Injury hampered the usually prolific Ciro Immobile, yet the capital club still placed second as star midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and brilliant winger Mattia Zaccagni excelled in front of a solid backline. The Biancocelesti completed the double over city rivals Roma, put four past Milan at home and won away at Napoli yet never looked like real title contenders.
Defending champions Milan sealed a Champions League spot yet often disappointed as the limitations of their squad were exposed.
Talismanic winger Rafael Leao again hit double figures, including a brace as the Rossoneri shocked runaway frontrunners Napoli 4-0 in April, but failed to replicate the form which led to the Scudetto. Marquee signing Charles De Ketelaere struggled to adapt to the demands of the Italian top-flight as defensive frailties were evident in surprise reversals against Torino, Sassuolo, Udinese and Fiorentina.
Inter reserved their best performances for domestic and European cup competitions yet still did enough to claim a Champions League place despite unexpected losses to Empoli, Spezia and Monza among others.
Argentinian World Cup winner Lautaro Martinez and left sided defender Federico Dimarco shone in a disjointed campaign as the Nerazzurri consistently stumbled against supposedly weaker opponents. Juventus won’t look back fondly on a controversial campaign in which chairman Andrea Agnelli resigned before they were stripped of 15 points by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) for financial crimes in January. Upon appeal the points were reinstated only for a fresh 10-point penalty to be imposed just hours before Juve were surprisingly thrashed 4-1 at Empoli in late May.
The punishment from the capital gains scandal prevented the Bianconeri from qualifying for Europe in a tumultuous term marred by a serious injury to star winger Federico Chiesa and the poor form of $75m striker Dusan Vlahovic.
Coach Massimiliano Allegri faced criticism for a negative approach but did give opportunities to impressive youngsters Nicolo Fagioli, Fabio Moretti and Samuel Iling-Junior.
The ever outspoken Jose Mourinho guided Roma to Europe by implementing a pragmatic if not always exciting strategy. Much was expected from Argentinian striker Paulo Dybala but persistent injury issues reduced his impact to showy snapshots as Roma finished outside the top four.
Atalanta were not quite as sparkling as previous campaigns yet fuelled by the goals of English winger Ademola Lookman and speedy young Danish star Rasmus Hojlund they proved that they could cut it with the big boys by making it to Europe again.
Elsewhere, promoted Monza stylishly secured their place in Serie A as heavy squad investment from owner and former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi paid off. They found it tough going early on and dismissed coach Giovanni Stroppa before making great strides under Raffaele Palladino. Home-town captain Matteo Pessina led by example while Brazilian left-back Carlos Augusto chipped in with crucial goals.
It was an underwhelming year for Fiorentina who thrived in Europe but couldn’t find consistency in Serie A. An early season injury to skilful wide man Nico Gonzalez didn’t help while Luka Jovic flattered to deceive and was outshone by fellow striker Arthur Cabral.
Off the field the calcio community mourned the loss of two legendary figures.
Bologna fired coach Sinisa Mihajlovic after just five winless games in early September. The Serbian, who had been diagnosed with leukaemia in 2019, sadly passed away at the age of 53 on December 16, 2022.
Former Sampdoria, Juventus and Italy striker Gianluca Vialli, widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of calcio, tragically died at the age of 58 on January 6, 2023 after a long struggle with pancreatic cancer. Vialli worked closely alongside former Sampdoria team-mate and Azzurri coach Roberto Mancini as part of the Italy coaching staff as the national team won the European Championship in 2021.
On the pitch Bologna improved under new tactician Thiago Motta and finished comfortably clear of the relegation spots. Veteran attacker Marko Arnautovic began the season strongly but succumbed to injury. Yet a redoubtable midfield featuring rapid winger Riccardo Orsolini and Scot Lewis Ferguson provided creativity and goals for the Rossoblu.
Udinese caught the imagination of the calcio world with six straight victories in the opening half of the campaign – including wins over Roma and Inter – yet couldn’t sustain it and had to settle for another mid-table finish.
Torino and Sassuolo showed they could still upset the established order without ever threatening to advance into the upper echelons of the standings. Empoli survived as their youth policy again bore fruit. Young midfielders Tommaso Baldanzi and Jacopo Fazzini both emerged to play their part in keeping the Tuscan side in the top tier of Italian football.
Only in the eternally unpredictable drama of Serie A could a coach be sacked, immediately rehired and dismissed again. Davide Nicola saved Salernitana from relegation last season yet after an 8-2 pummelling at Atalanta in January was given his marching orders. Two days later he was back at work only to be out for good in mid-February. Replacement Paulo Sousa was indebted to the goals of striker Boulaye Dia as the Senegal international propelled the Granata away from the drop zone to safety.
At Lecce the formidable defensive pairing of former World Cup winner Samuel Umtiti and the hulking Federico Baschirotto combined to retain the promoted Puglian club’s top -flight status.
Mired in debt and unable to strengthen a squad which barely survived the season before, Sampdoria ended a miserable campaign rock bottom of the table. The Blucerchiati fell back down to the second tier after 11 years in the top flight. Coach Dejan Stankovic replaced Marco Giampaolo in October 2022 but couldn’t prevent a Doria side stuck in quicksand from slowly sinking down to Serie B.
Despite a season blighted by a leaky defence and a misfiring forward line, Hellas Verona escaped relegation after defeating Spezia in a relegation play-off, 3-1. Meanwhile, promoted Cremonese returned to the second tier after a 26-year wait to return to the top-flight. Stuck in bottom place for the majority of the campaign, the Lombardy club were shockingly winless until the 24th round of fixtures and never truly looked capable of competing with Italy’s leading clubs.
