There is always action in Naples. Between the bustling coach Antonio Conte and the very cash president Aurelio de Laurentiis, it is almost impossible to be bored. At least behind the scenes, because on the pitch, boredom lurks, like the 0-0 conceded at home against Parma and which supports the thesis of a team lacking offensive talent, while the two Belgians De Bruyne and Lukaku are still absent due to injury. And Antonio Conte cannot properly exploit the summer transfer window.
Two men are struggling, striker Lorenzo Lucca, who arrived in the form of a €9 million loan with a purchase obligation of €26 million to be paid in February to Udinese, and winger Noa Lang, with a strong tongue but poor statistics. As explained Sky Italiaone of these two players could be sacrificed in the winter transfer window, to make room for an offensive recruit. And Naples is eyeing Moroccan Youssel En-Nesyri, who qualified his country for the CAN 2025 final by scoring the last shot on goal on Wednesday evening.
Lucca poses a problem
That said, Naples cannot act as it wishes in this winter transfer window. The club’s financial control committee imposed a zero balance on Napoli for exceeding the ceiling on salary costs. It will therefore be necessary to sell to buy and it is Lorenzo Lucca who arouses the most desire. Because before his current difficulties, this atypical striker who measures 2.01m had won over Udinese. But he doesn’t want to go anywhere during this market.
The first condition imposed by Lucca, which has so far derailed the Benfica option, is his refusal to play abroad. The second is to only join a big club, preferably participating in European competitions or aspiring for a place in the Champions League. To sell Lucca and unlock its transfer window, Naples does not want to skimp on resources and wants a permanent transfer for an amount at least equal to the total value of the player, estimated at 35 million euros. Knowing that we will also have to finish paying Udinese for the remaining €26 million, which complicates the operation…
