Napoli announced last week that Maurizio Sarri has replaced Rafael Benitez as the head coach of the partenopei.
From one shade of blue to another, former Empoli head coach Maurizio Sarri has been appointed as Rafael Benitez’s successor at Napoli. The 56-year-old tactician guided Empoli to Serie A promotion in only his second season. He led the Tuscan club to a 15th place finish this past season, much to the surprise of many pundits who pegged Empoli as a club most likely to relegate to Serie B.
The story of his ascent to Serie A is worth reading in a feature piece by Nicolo Schira of Gazzetta Dello Sport, which we translated for our readers on Italianfootballdaily.com.
Sarri was regarded as one of the best Serie A coaches this past season, playing an organized and entertaining brand of football. He is a maniac for details, loves to identify weaknesses in his opponents and is meticulous in match preparation.
Perhaps it was this style of play, combined with Empoli’s emphatic 4-2 victory over Napoli that attracted Aurelio De Laurentiis to get his man and beat out the competition. Sarri was rumoured to have suitors not only in Italy, but in Russia as well.
He will take over a side that has been not been playing up to its lofty expectations, both domestically and in European competition.
What can we expect of a Sarri led Napoli?
It is one thing to coach a young club, who’s main objective is to avoid relegation. Coaching Napoli, who aspires to win the scudetto and do well in Champions League, is something else.
Napoli was the second highest scoring team in Serie A this past season. Assuming the bulk of the team remains, Sarri will have a nice group of players at his disposal to continue playing his entertaining football and have Napoli remain one of the top offensive sides in Serie A. Expect Napoli to be more consistent and take advantage of opponent’s mistakes.
Sarri can definitely help Napoli on the defensive end, which is an area of weakness that needed to be addressed. This applies both to the personnel and the structure. Expect Napoli to be active in the summer transfer window as they look to bring in reinforcements that Sarri will request. This will be an interesting story to follow, as Sarri will work with new sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli. Giuntoli was the former sporting director of Carpi, winners of Serie B championship and now promoted to Serie A. Both men will have significant money to spend for the first time.
There will be more pressure to win by De Laurentiis and the fans, and more media scrutiny. In addition to league play, Sarri will have to manage Napoli’s participation in the Europa League. This will not affect the 56 year-old Sarri at all. He has already established himself as someone who does things his way, preferring to wear his trademark tracksuits and smoking cigarettes on the sidelines.
Look for Sarri to remain loyal to his philosophy, and continue working in ways which made him successful. Sarri will make a few tweaks to take advantage of the skill of the players at his disposal.
He really has nothing to lose, and that can be a great advantage for Napoli. Without the pressure of Champions League, Napoli will be a serious contender for the scudetto as Sarri will bring some much needed enthusiasm and organization for the partenopei.
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