Return Of Arkadiusz Milik Could Hold The Key To Napoli's Serie A Title Bid

Return Of Arkadiusz Milik Could Hold The Key To Napoli's Serie A Title Bid
08:05, 11 Apr 2018

As Napoli’s match with Chievo Verona wore on last Sunday, the feeling that their Serie A title hopes were slipping away was ever-increasing. Juventus had extended their lead at the top to seven points earlier in the weekend with a 4-2 win away to Benevento, meaning that Maurizio Sarri’s men simply had to take a win over their relegation-threatened opponents.

However, just like in their previous match – a disappointing 1-1 draw with Sassuolo – the Partenopei were struggling. Belgian forward Dries Mertens had already seen a spot-kick saved by veteran Chievo goalkeeper Stefano Sorrentino, and the away side had taken an unlikely lead in the 73rd minute, much to the dismay of the home supporters who dream of a first Scudetto since the days of Diego Maradona.

With a key clash with the reigning Serie A champions in Turin still to come it was a match Napoli simply couldn’t afford to lose, but they would be rescued by a duo who sit outside of Sarri’s exclusive club, a regular starting XI that he relies upon so heavily.

After having peppered the Chievo goal with shots in the dying minutes of the match, the breakthrough came in the 89th minute from the head of Arkadiusz Milik, a man returning from a second ACL injury in consecutive seasons. Earning merely a point was still not enough though, for a side with title ambitions, but 20-year-old Amadou Diawara fired in a superb curling effort from 12 yards out to send the Napoli faithful into delirium.

It was a thrilling end to the match, and a conclusion that would keep the title race exciting for yet another week. Yet the identity of the goalscorers pose an important question to be considered here, that of whether these fringe players will be a deciding factor as the Neapolitan outfit go head-to-head with Juve in order to win the title.

Let’s not forget that Milik arrived in Naples from Ajax in summer 2016 and made an electric start to the campaign, seemingly unfazed by the fact he had been brought in to replace Gonzalo Higuain, the Argentine who had left for Juventus for a whopping €90 million fee. Milik would find the net in only his third ever attempt on goal for his new team, scoring a brace on his debut versus Milan, adding two more in subsequent matches against Dynamo Kyiv in the Champions League and versus Bologna on the domestic front.

However his early form was brought to a sudden halt as he tore his ACL whilst on international duty with Poland in the October international break of that season, forcing Sarri to think of a different solution with the transfer window already shut. Fans of Southampton can surely understand that Manolo Gabbiadini was a flop when tested in that central striker role, but the tactician had another plan up his sleeve.

Winger Dries Mertens was then deployed in the middle of a front three that also consisted of Lorenzo Insigne and Jose Callejon, and the rest, as they say, is history. Mertens would go on to score 28 goals in 2016/17, making the loss of Milik seem like a distant memory, although the side would once again fail to beat Juve to the trophy.

The early stages of the current campaign saw a more determined Napoli take the league by storm having further perfected their slick passing style during a pre-season retreat. It was heartbreaking to see Milik suffer the same ACL injury in consecutive seasons, but in truth at that time they didn’t need him for anything more than as an emergency backup.

However now that the front three have played around 2,500 minutes each in the league alone this term, some refreshing of the starting XI could be the difference-maker in the final push for the title. The midfield is also in the same boat in terms of minutes played, and a debut Serie A goal for the 20-year-old Diawara can only be a good thing as fatigue inevitably sets in.

“We want to win when we step on to the pitch, no matter where we are or who we are up against,” said Sarri after the late win over Chievo. “We played well and I am happy that we continued creating chances to the end, which wasn’t easy in this heat. “I am particularly pleased that the goals were scored by Milik and Diawara. Every time Milik steps on to the field, he makes us realise how disastrous his double injury was for us.”

These words from the Coach will give Napoli fans some hope that he is willing to deploy some kind of rotation in the final seven games of the season, as the Partenopei make the final push towards the Scudetto trophy that they so badly crave. 

Napoli visit AC Milan on Sunday and you can follow the action via our live match centre (Kick-Off 2pm BST):

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