Now or never for Napoli’s loanee legion

Date: 18th October 2015 at 12:56pm
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With the international break behind us, the time has come to cast an eye over the Napoli youngsters who find themselves out on loan.

The loan system has benefited the Napoli first team squad a great deal, launching the career of Lorenzo Insigne and furthering that of Omar El Kaddouri. However, very few have benefited quite as much as the aforementioned Insigne, who had everything he could have wanted during his loan spell with Pescara.

A good place to start is with Roberto Insigne, the younger brother of Napoli’s top scorer this season. The 21-year-old is into his third loan spell away from the club since making his Serie A debut in 2013, this time leading the line for Avellino. Last season was the most productive for the young striker, scoring nine goals and bagging six assists with Reggina.

Roberto-e-Lorenzo-InsigneWith Marcello Trotta and Francesco Tavano in the Avellino squad, opportunities to play are understandably difficult to find for Insigne. However, he has already played six games in all competitions, finding the back of the net once and creating two goals for his team-mates. In fact, only one of the five matches he’s played has seen him not complete the 90 minutes.

A promising set-up for a player sitting in the shadow of his older brother. The close proximity of Avellino to Naples does bring a personal comfort to those on loan there, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a prime destination for every Napoli prodigy.

In the case of Gennaro Tutinio, his loan spell to Avellino caused a great deal of uncertainty. A promising talent who impressed during the UEFA Youth League, Tutino suffered a cruciate ligament rupture while on loan with Vicenza last season, but he saw action earlier this year with Lega Pro side Gubbio. He has yet to feature for Avellino, which is perhaps largely due to number of attackers in the side.

Tutino is still only a 19-year-old and has plenty of time to continue his development. Elsewhere the situation is very different for Josip Radosevic, who is fast running out of time to convince the Napoli hierarchy of his potential. Due to return from Croatian side HNK Rijeka at the end of the year, the tough-tackling midfielder has played over 30 games since returning to his country of birth in January. With so much competition in the Napoli midfield, the fate of Radosevic could lie elsewhere. Soma Novothny is another who seems destined to move on after failing to live up to his early potential.

contini-niki-6234004562More immediate attention is being placed on players who could deputise for first team players. A lack of certainty in the Napoli goal could open the door for Nikita Baranovsky Contini, who burst onto the scene with the club’s Primavera last season. The Ukranian-born Italian shot-stopper is currently on loan at SPAL, where he’s only featured prominently in their short-lived Coppa Italia run.

Alfredo Bifulco is another who could step in out of necessity. A versatile midfield player who prefers to occupy the right wing, Bifulco has been known to produce the spectacular with an innate dribbling ability and penchant for overhead kicks. Currently on loan at Lega Pro side AC Rimini, the talented 18-year-old has played three games so far for the Emilia-Romagna club.

Finally, there’s one player who many feel should already be in the first team squad, and that’s Igor Lasicki. Born in Walbrzych, a Polish city on the border with the Czech Republic, Lasicki graduated from the Zaglebie Lubin youth academy; a club noted for it’s development of young players. He joined the Azzurri in 2012 and made his first team debut just two years later in a brief cameo against Hellas Verona. Indebted to former captain Paolo Cannavaro for fast-tracking his development, Lasicki also benefited from coach Rafa Benitez who paid greater attention to youth then Walter Mazzarri did.

lasickiThe gifted defender is currently on loan at SS Maceeratese in Lega Pro where he’s made three appearances. Under the tutelage of former Napoli striker, turned coach, Cristian Bucchi, fans are anticipating a bright future for Lasicki. With just the four recognised central defenders in the Azzurri squad, having Lasicki waiting in the wings could be important going forward.

For some of these players, their current loan spell is vital to continuing their career with Napoli. While it may come down to a moment of individual brilliance or just by playing consistently throughout the season, the Azzurri will have to make a decision on these youngsters as they feature in football transfer news in the coming weeks.

 

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