Arriving in Naples from Ajax exactly two years ago, Arkadiusz Milik had big shoes to fill. He would replace Gonzalo Higuain at Napoli, a striker who had joined Juventus for over €90 million having broken the Serie A single season goal scoring record with 36 strikes under their former boss Maurizio Sarri.
Then just 22 years old, the 6’1” hitman had fired in 21 goals for Ajax the season before and was already a fully-fledged Poland international, having scored the winner versus Northern Ireland at Euro 2016. There was therefore a lot of weight placed upon his shoulders, but this did not seem to faze Milik at all.
All he needed was three shots on goal to find the net for the first time for his new club, scoring a brace in a 4-2 win for the Partenopei versus AC Milan in August that year. Milik – who had also become the most expensive Polish player ever with a €32 million fee – would also fire in a brace versus Dynamo Kyiv in the Champions League and again versus Bologna in domestic action.
Napoli supporters were becoming excited as he notched up a seven goal tally before the first international break, however an ACL injury in October with Poland brought his campaign to a dramatic halt. He would not be fully recovered until nearly the end of that season, and would heartbreakingly endure the same fate at the beginning of the following campaign as history cruelly repeated itself.
In two years, the striker has played just 987 minutes of domestic football, scoring an impressive 10 goals during that time. Now though, he has arguably an even bigger opportunity to shine than when he first arrived.
Under former boss Sarri, winger Dries Mertens was converted to the striker role, initially out of necessity following his team-mate’s unfortunate injury. The Belgian would of course find huge success in that position, prompting the famously rigid Coach to become reluctant to change things around when Milik returned to fitness.
Yet he will now have the chance to play under Carlo Ancelotti, with multiple reports suggesting the experienced tactician will push Mertens back in his 4-2-3-1 system, with Milik due to take up the role of the main striker that had been earmarked for him when he first arrived back in summer 2016.
"Has Ancelotti fallen in love with Milik? Yes, it's true,” admitted Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis on Radio Kiss Kiss Napoli recently. The feeling is certainly mutual as the striker admitted to reporters that he “can talk to him [Ancelotti] like a friend”, and all the signs look to be positive for the forthcoming campaign.
While all eyes will be on new Juventus star Cristiano Ronaldo, it’s certainly worthwhile to keep a look out for his Napoli counterpart in Serie A this season. “Are Juve still the team to beat? I don’t fear anyone,” the striker told reporters at a pre-season press conference. “I have respect for a lot of teams like Juve, Inter and Roma who are strong – but there is also Milan and Lazio. However, we shouldn’t fear anyone because we are Napoli and we want to win.”
If Arkadiusz Milik can stay injury free, he will be like a new signing for the Partenopei, one that will certainly be aiming to be top-scorer come the end of the campaign.
