For most Serie A sides a third place finish would be considered a good season, however for this Napoli it would be considered a failure.
This was supposed to be the season where they challenged Juventus and yet they find themselves hugely cut adrift of the champions elect despite the gap last season being just nine points.
And given the very recent away defeat to Parma the question is, why have Napoli fallen further behind in Serie A?
The summer was one of monumental change as Rafael Benitez came in for Inter bound Walter Mazzarri and club legend Edinson Cavani departed Italian shores for Paris Saint Germain in a blockbuster deal worth around €64.5 million. With these funds, in came a plethora of signings including Gonzalo Higuain alongside fellow Real Madrid players Raul Albiol and Jose Callejon.
In all, 12 new faces arrived at the club while a massive 21 left the club in total, including those on loan. Clubs with such a high turnover rate of players seldom have instant success and their season can be broken down into three distinct phases that have shaped the outcome of what is likely to be seen as one of transition rather than glory.
Initially all seemed perfect in Serie A, after eleven games the side had amassed nine wins including crucial away victories against AC Milan and Fiorentina while falling to a resurgent Roma and drawing with Sassuolo. Importantly the new signings made an instant impact, Higuain and Callejon had already combined for eleven league goals. Jose Manuel Reina impressed between the sticks, the highlight being his match winning performance against Milan.
The turning point came with their thrashing against Juventus in November, they would drop to third and stay there. Comprehensively outplayed in Turin, they then followed that with another disappointing defeat this time to Parma at San Paolo. The following month would see the Partenopei bounce back with convincing wins at Lazio, Hellas Verona and home wins against Inter and Sampdoria. However, these games were interspersed with poor draws against Udinese and Cagliari.
Late January would see Napoli fall further back when they failed to win in three games. A late Rolando Bianchi goal earned ten man Bologna a last minute draw, hampered their ambitions further. Six days later only a late Albiol goal spared embarrassment against Chievo and worse was to follow as they were comfortably dispatched by Atalanta courtesy of several defensive howlers. Much like the defeat against Juventus this 3-0 scoreline would mark another turning point, albeit it a more positive manner.
A crucial victory over Milan put the side back on course and went on to win five of their next seven Serie A games including home victories over both Roma and Juventus. Unconvincing performances against both Genoa and Livorno saw vital points dropped against both pushing them further back from the leading pair in Serie A.
The fact their Serie A campaign can be split into three distinct blocks reveals a lot about how Napoli have performed this season and provide the question; did the side simply run out of energy during the middle of the campaign? From November to early March they won six, drew six and lost three; however compared to the early stages of the season and along with March to the present it is a different story as they have won 13, drawn just once and lost twice.
Concentration appears to be an issue for the squad as of the thirty two league goals they have conceded this season 13 have come in the last 20 minutes of play, of which eight were in the last ten minutes. During the season they let both Hugo Campagnaro and Paolo Cannavaro depart, the result of which was the dismantling of the heart of the defence and their replacements have taken longer than the new forwards to settle at the club and forge an effective partnership.
European football can also be a factor, they were unfortunate to be knocked out of the Champions League group stage with twelve points but their foray into the Europa League was a failure with disappointing performances against Swansea before falling to Porto in the last 16 and ultimately had a negative impact on their league form.
There is a clear case of the classic Europa League hangover; following their four Europa League ties the Partenopei managed a solitary win whilst drawing two games and losing against Fiorentina.
This season will be a disappointment; however they still have the final of the Coppa Italia to come so silverware could still be on its way to San Paolo. If Benitez can add another quality centre back to partner Albiol for next season there is reason to believe that this side can rise to where they want to be and challenge for the Scudetto next season as long as they learn from their shortcomings this season.
