Just a few seasons ago, Napoli lifted the trophy and basked in championship glory. Fast forward to the 2023-24 Serie A season and they find themselves struggling to keep up with their opponents. Take a closer look at how the players wearing Napoli shirt have performed this season.

Brief background on Napoli’s success in the previous season and the current state of the team

In the 2017-18 season, under Sarri, Napoli almost won their first Serie A title since 1990, but fell just 4 points behind Juventus. Despite failing to lift the trophy, Napoli’s performance was praised for its entertaining and attacking style of play.

The next year, Napoli made even greater progress as they once again broke their own record, gaining 91 points, but still trailed Juventus by five points. However, they managed to lift the Coppa Italia and win their first major trophy since the days of Diego Maradona.

After Sarri moved to Chelsea in 2018, Ancelotti took over as coach and led Napoli to another runner-up finish in his first season.

In 2022, they won the Serie A championship again. Now, the 2023 season is sluggish. Achieved 10 wins, 6 draws and 8 losses, ranking 9th. No win in 2 consecutive games.

The Coaching Change: Analyzing the decision to fire head coach Mazzarri and bring in new coach Calzona

The Naples club recently announced that it had fired head coach Mazzarri. Although the team will next compete in the Champions League, De Laurentiis still made this decision.

Mazzarri took charge of Napoli in November but was forced to leave after just three months. This decision may not be surprising, because Napoli has performed poorly in Serie A and is currently only ranked ninth, 27 points behind Inter Milan at the top. This season may set a new scoring record for the worst defending champion in Serie A.

The new Napoli coach is not Mourinho as previously rumored, but Spalletti’s former assistant Carlsona, who is currently coaching the Slovakia national team.

In the future, Carlsona will need to prepare for the World Cup qualifiers for the Slovakia team at the same time, and will also lead the team to participate in the European Cup in the summer. This could have an impact on Napoli’s results as his energy and tactical levels could suffer.

Mourinho was once considered the most suitable candidate for Naples’ new coach, but in the end De Laurentiis chose Carsona. Mourinho has yet to find a new home. Compared with the part-time Carlsona, he obviously has better coaching experience and ability.

Summarize

Napoli’s 2023-2024 Serie A season is filled with inconsistencies, injuries and off-field issues. Despite having a talented squad and a strong start to the season, they have been unable to maintain their form and currently finish in a disappointing ninth place. How they will bounce back from this setback next season remains to be seen.