Champions League Preview: What Barcelona can expect from Napoli
Check out Football Italia‘s preview of Napoli ahead of their Champions League Round of 16 tie with Barcelona.
The Current Situation
Napoli have been struggling for the whole season but it feels like they have truly hit rock bottom now. President Aurelio De Laurentiis confirmed the hiring of Francesco Calzona on Monday evening, barely 24 hours before the kick-off of the Barcelona game. The 55-year-old is a familiar face at the club having already been the assistant to Maurizio Sarri and Luciano Spalletti, but only trained the team once before Wednesday’s meeting at the Stadio Maradona. Calzona has kept his role as the Slovakia national team coach and has become Napoli’s third manager this season, their fourth in nine months considering that Spalletti left the Partenopei last summer. Napoli started the 2023-24 Champions League campaign with Rudi Garcia in charge. Walter Mazzarri was at the Stadio Maradona when the Round of 16 draw took place in December and Calzona will be in charge in the first knock-out phase game. Rollercoasters.
What to expect from the drawing board – Francesco Calzona
As already mentioned, Calzona already knows the club and many first-team players, having already worked with them in the past. It remains to be seen if he’ll be able to have an immediate impact, as De Laurentiis hopes, but he will surely follow a clear tactical strategy. Mazzarri used to alternate 3-4-3, 3-5-2 and 4-3-3 systems and as a result, his Napoli side didn’t have a well-defined identity. On the contrary, Calzona will surely use a 4-3-3 line-up, which Sarri and Spalletti used when he previously worked with them at the club. On paper, Calzona is a fan of ball possession and high pressing, but Napoli players have not been
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