The manner in which Napoli dropped its opening match 2-1 against Sassuolo played out in an all too familiar fashion to fans who’ve witnessed this tragic play unfold multiple times in the Rafa Benitez era.
The club has given its supporters fits by making a habit of playing well against the top sides and consistently dropping points against “smaller clubs” in a maddening yo-yo of results.
The lack of a killer instinct last season cost the club a spot in this year’s Champions League and is an issue which must be addressed as the leash will be much shorter on new coach Maurizio Sarri and sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli than it was for their respective predecessors.
The Partenopei jumped on the hosts early when Marek Hamsik benefited from a poor clearance from former captain Paolo Cannavaro and slotted home the go-ahead goal inside the opening minutes.
Unfortunately, after a bright 25 minutes of play, Napoli failed to add to their lead and would pay the ultimate price as a pair of shocking defensive miscues sealed their fate.
All the enthusiasm and expectation of a transformative summer came crashing down in the Reggio-Emilia night and the Napoli faithful were transported back to that fateful final match day last season when Champions League dreams were quashed as the squad failed to seize the moment and a Gonzalo Higuain penalty miss seemed a fitting end to a campaign of disappointment.
However, it will take more than a pair of physical errors to doom this club, as president Aurelio De Laurentiis has built a foundation that should drive the club forward. Sarri must now use his 25 years of Italian coaching experience and seize the opportunity of a lifetime to coalesce this group into a working unit.
Veteran right-back Christian Maggio was pressed into service as Elseid Hysaj demonstrated his versatility moving to the left flank to cover for the injured Ivan Strinic and suspended Faouzi Ghoulam.
While Maggio has been a tremendous steward for the club, the 33-year old was exposed for both Sassuolo goals and is unlikely to see much of the pitch going forward.
Additionally, David Lopez looked like a man ill-prepared to start in the defensive midfield position and while avoiding the catastrophic mistake, the Spaniard didn’t play up to the standard fans are expecting from new signing Allan who didn’t play due to a lack of fitness.
The attack lacked a crispness and Sarri’s substitutions in the match were telling. The starting front line were all substituted as the coach tried in vain to assemble the pieces and forge a combination to unlock the Neroverdi defense.
It is only a matter of time before the embarrassment of riches in attack begin clicking and the likes of Higuain, Lorenzo Insigne, Manolo Gabbiadini and the rest demonstrate their quality.
Defense has long been the club’s Achilles heel and, despite Maggio’s blackouts and the comedic stylings of Raul Albiol, the backline looked more settled, if only due to the leadership of goalkeeper Pepe Reina.
Fear not fellow Napoletanos, a new day is drawing near and the San Paolo pitch on Sunday night against Sampdoria may yet provide the soaring spectacle we’ve waited for all summer.
