SSC Napoli

[DCGweez]

Lol his had me rolling...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=354vf_TqPYE

[maro]

ror.

[red]

Cavani to Chelsea, it seems.

58m euros to Napoli and 8.5m per season to Cavani.

http://www.calciomercato.com/prima-pagi ... sea-622878

[RomaShield27]

Hopefully it doesn't happen. Serie A will be a duller place without him.

[tonykart]

I thought De Laurentis wasn't an owner that sold his guys. Doesn't seem like he needs the money.

If hiring Benitez doesn't kill Napoli, selling Cavani 100% will.

Disappointing.

[RomaShield27]

I think De Laurentis has been true to his word. He's said from the start he doesn't want to sell Cavani and would only do so for his buy-out clause – €64m I believe – and wouldn't accept a cent less. A few clubs made offers, like that Chelsea €58m bid, and were all rejected.

[tonykart]

Looks like PSG is going to pay the clauise.

What a shame, I really like Napoli.

I honestly think big money is ruining the game. It's getting harder to watch.

[RomaShield27]

I agree. I admire Napoli for saying he's not for sale for anything but his buy-out clause. That would usually put clubs off, as Cavani is not worth €64m - few players are, bar Messi – yet you still have these mega-rich foreign-owned clubs who are able to spend such money without a care and completely distort the playing field.

[p_maldini_3]

he's worth the price. try to look for who has scored more goals that him in the past 3 seasons, i doubt that there is more than 5 players who have.

[tonykart]

He is definitely worth the price. His production, stamina and durability are unparalleled. There is no player like him in the world atm. He will play every game for the club that signs him, he will run all over the pitch in each game, and he will scored goals at a top level rate. Oh, he is worth the 60+mil.

Just too bad for Napoli. With Benitez there they will just make a bunch of shit signings and digress slowly each year while losing all identity in the process.

[forzaitalia]

Napoli look like they're getting Pepe Reina on loan.

[p_maldini_3]

as awesome as napoli's current transfer season seems to be, i still feel that they are loading up with 4 star players.

[red]

Higuain's some move by Napoli.

He's is certainly a better forward than I thought they would be able to attract this summer.

While the fee is big, I'm not sure I'd be overly critical of them for overpaying a bit for Higuain, since PSG had just overpaid for Cavani. There's about 25m difference between the values of the tranfers which sounds about right to me in terms of the difference between the two players.

However, I'd be fairly concerned about the wages Napoli are reportedly offering. As is speaking about him getting 6m per year - that's more than Cavani was getting, I believe.

Now that wage is okay if Higuain does well and Napoli establish themselves as a CL team pretty much every year. However, that wage could be a huge burden if things don't go well and could make it quite difficult to sell him - especially to try and sell him for any sort of decent figure that wouldn't see Napoli making an enormous loss on the deal, so this transfer does look like a pretty big gamble to me.

Still, it's nice to see Serie A attracting another good player.

[red]

Pretty decent team.

Think they could do with a more defensive full-back on one side to balance things out a bit and maybe a better ball winner than Behrami if they have the cash for that.

Don't see them having enough to compete with Juve, but no reason for that team not to be in the mix for a CL spot.

[RomaShield27]

Agreed, Higuain is a fantastic signing, even if they did pay a little too much for him. But i suppose there were lots of teams after him and Ancelotti wasn't convinced they should sell. Still, I love the way the signed him from under the noses of Arsenal. Its usually the other way round, with an Italian club been outbid by one of the mega-rich from the EPL.

I thought this was going to be a bad summer all round for Serie A with stars like Cavani, Jovetic (Marquinhos) leaving, but Napoli and Fiorentina have made some excellent signings, and aren't finished yet.

Napoli are supposedly close to signing Jackson Martinez of Porto for something like €30m. Bit of a surprise, considering they got Higuain, and i thought Martinez might just be an alternative if they didnt get Higuain, but I think they want both, which means they'll have to look at playing two strikers up front, I'd say.

[forzaitalia]

[red]

Yeah, I didn't put Mertens in there because I'm not familiar with him.

Most folk seem to think he's a decent signing, though.

[red]

[p_maldini_3]

higuain is a great bump up in quality for napoli. along with benitez who seems to have a good record with quick strikers (torres), i think higuain should be lighting up serie A.

napoli and fiorentina have made some awesome signings that is good news for serie A.

[RomaShield27]

Napoli And Gonzalo Higuain – An Overpriced Buy, Yet A Very Strong Statement of Intent
/ By Parth Pandya on July 29, 2013

Napoli have completed the signing of Real Madrid’s Argentine forward Gonzalo Higuain days after selling Edinson Cavani to PSG in a record transfer. While the Higuain deal from the initial viewing seems a bit overpriced, it’s a very strong statement of intent from Napoli to the rest of Serie A.

Often individuals and institutions, when encounter a situation they aren’t particularly familiar with, end up committing an error owing to an error in judgement. SSC Napoli and Aurelio De Laurentiis found themselves in one such situation during the last week when they matched Real Madrid’s far from reasonable valuation of Argentine striker Gonzalo Higuain and signed him as the potential replacement for the mercurial Edinson Cavani.

Although Napoli finished second only to champions Juventus in the last edition of Serie A and are a significantly important club in European football presently, they are still finding their feat in the so called elitist league of bigger clubs and haven’t yet mastered the art of negotiations. While De Laurentiis must win plaudits for maintaining a firm stand of not compromising on Napoli’s valuation of Cavani and eventually selling the Uruguayan at an astronomical price, one might feel he just rushed into the deal a little too much to sign a replacement.

Of course, Higuain is no mug with ball at his feet and may very well go on to replicate what Cavani did so consistently over the course of three seasons but that doesn’t change the fact he was deemed surplus to the club’s requirement in the Spanish capital and for a player facing uncertain future at the end of the last season, Napoli have most certainly overpaid. In retrospect, De Laurentiis may feel he should have taken a leaf or two out of Fiorentina’s book. With the imminent departure of Stevan Jovetic, Fiorentina were fairly confident of attracting a lucrative price for the Montenegrin and thereby adding some serious cash to their transfer kitty. However, they wasted no time and secured the deal for Mario Gomez even before Jovetic to City became a concrete possibility. Apparently, Fiorentina got their man for what could easily be billed as a paltry sum of money, especially given what Gomez brings to the table.

Napoli on the other hand, caught the entire world’s attention with the sale of Cavani and with that kind of cash exchanging hands, no club was ever going to do business with them at reasonable rates thereafter. Their need for a striker too became more than apparent and Real Madrid clearly knew they can push the deal with the Neapolitans to its limits. Had Napoli been a little more proactive and been done with their search for the replacements before actually finalizing the Cavani deal, they would have done a better overall business as far as balancing the books goes. The current price tag now even puts Higuain under extra pressure to straightaway match those standards Cavani set before the worth of his price starts being questioned across the sections in media.

But there’s another perspective that offers a more positive narrative of the entire transfer saga. With this deal, Napoli have stated their intent in the strongest possible manner and have passed a very strong message to the rest of the league and perhaps to the other big clubs in Europe too. No longer are they content at being referred to as ‘Maradona’s club’ or being regarded as perennial challengers. They are here to win the highest honours and are taking all the steps in the right direction to realize the objective.

That Higuain preferred a move to Napoli over a potential transfer to Arsenal might ultimately have to do with the stronger financial muscle of the Italians but beating the Londoners in the race for the pursuit of a high profile striker is no mean feat for a club that was languishing in the third division of Italian football not very long ago. While due to their reluctance to spend big, Arsenal might be pushovers in a transfer race to a host of English clubs and other bigger European powerhouses, but landing a player at their expense is still a very big event for Napoli at this stage and in more ways than one, this transfer formally announces their arrival in Europe’s top cadre of clubs where entry is earned – often, bought too.

For over two seasons, an attacking triumvirate composed of Cavani, Lavezzi and Hamsik was often labelled a ‘holy trinity’ and the three failed not to entertain the fans and neutrals with their adorable display of skills and trickery. But at the same time, although the fans had hidden their anticipations in some of the deeper corners of their hearts, they knew the revelry times were temporary and that it was only a matter of time before the players demanded sought a move citing ambitions. It’s not a very unfamiliar scenario to clubs dealing with mid-table mediocrity and there were fears expressed over Napoli facing the same fate of being reduced back to a pedestrian status at losing their star players.

What followed was contrasting these notions. Napoli sold Lavezzi ahead of the start of last season to PSG and promoted youth prospect Lorenzo Insigne to the first team after a successful season with Pescara in the second division. Amidst the concerns of adjusting to life after Lavezzi, Napoli finished the season second – in Lavezzi’s final season, the team had finished fifth, a staggering 23 points behind champions Juventus, although due weight must be given to the fact the squad was stretched to its limits having gone through a very demanding Champions League campaign.

The eventual finish to the season must have bolstered their self-belief and that shows in the ambitious route that the club has taken in the transfer market this window. Obviously, Cavani’s shoes will be way too bigger to be filled when compared to those of Lavezzi but the important point here is Napoli are not ready succumbing to mediocrity at the prospect of losing their most influential player. They are ready to fight it out against the big guns both domestically and also at the continental level and should the need be, they won’t hesitate splashing the cash – as was seen in the Higuain transfer.

A little more than a year ago, De Laurentiis had collectively valued his highly acclaimed trio at €100 M and many back then had found his valuation slightly outrageous. Napoli have sold two of the three so far and are nearly that mark already. But the intent to keep the squad competitive by buying immediate reinforcements means fans won’t lose their sleeps at the thought of even Hamsik inclining to go for greener pastures in another year. There are ample reasons to believe the squad will still remain competitive and will only get better with time. Napoli aren’t ready to live that isolated, unobtrusive life of perpetual also-rans.

Coming back to Higuain, he might not be the most hard-working of forwards and offers little assistance off the ball. He may not replicate the same influence therefore that Cavani very effortlessly pulled off but he’s very effective inside the box and has a knack playing off the line held by the last defender. What this means is, he might be able to match Cavani’s numbers in terms of goals but the lack of work rate and athleticism on his part will force the midfield to play a more active part in the ball-winning duels.

They might also need a player who has an eye for that defence splitting pass to feed Higuain. Benitez is an experienced coach and should easily adapt to these certain tactical requirements to bring out the best of Higuain. Moreover, with Benitez, a better European showing comes almost as a guarantee and with his tactical innovations, he might take Napoli to stages in the Champions League that not many might fancy them reaching.

Since making their comeback to Serie A in the latter half of the previous decade, Napoli have come a long way and are only a player or two away from mounting serious challenge for top honours at every stage. De Laurentiis seems committed to take the club to the ultimate glory and with the focus of the management not being lost, Napoli will definitely scale those dizzying heights in due time despite needing to sell their much celebrated stars from time to time.