We were used to it, seeing him fall and then get up, as it happened several times in recent years. The title has been contested since 1898 in varying forms of competition. Nonetheless, Napoli qualified for the 1994–95 UEFA Cup, reaching the third round and in 1996–97, Napoli appeared at the Coppa Italia final, but lost 3–1 to Vicenza. Within a week, Napoli will play at the 'Diego Armando Maradona Stadium'. Because yes, it could not wait. During his Neapolitan years, Maradona scored 115 goals in the Azzurro jersey, each more memorable than the last, in addition to forming a bond that continued with the city over the years. "Maradona directly loved Naples, and Naples directly loved Maradona," Ottavio Bianchi, coach of Napoli between 1985 and 1989 and then again in the 1990s, told Eurosport. Cavani finished as top scorer in the division with 29 goals, which resulted in him being sold to Paris Saint-Germain for a club-record fee of €64 million.[38]. [16] He was a capable goal-scorer and eventually set the all-time goal-scoring record for Napoli, which was later surpassed by players like Diego Maradona and Marek Hamšík. And the Neapolitans, in turn, quickly identified with him. Single-handedly (almost), he brought Napoli to the top in Italy. [20] The club bounced back to ensure top flight football at the start of the 1950s. [2], Because a mainland Southern Italian team had never won the league before, this turned Maradona into a cultural, social and borderline religious icon[26] for Neapolitans, which stretched beyond the realms of just football. [25] The squad was gradually re-built, with the likes of Ciro Ferrara, Salvatore Bagni and Fernando De Napoli filling the ranks. He helped kids have a dream, thus keeping them away from the bad things that exist in all the suburbs of the world. [2] After just one season in Serie B, they were promoted to the top division, along with fellow "sleeping giants" Genoa. This year saw the breakout season for Dries Mertens who scored 34 goals in all competition after he was moved from the left wing to center forward following Milik's torn ACL. For Naples and its inhabitants, the dreaded day arrived on Wednesday. "Together, we have lived our best times," said Bianchi. AC Milan faces Napoli in a Serie A match on Saturday, October 21, 2020 (11/21/20) at the Stadio San Paolo in Naples, Italy. [24] The club won their second Coppa Italia trophy in 1975–76, eliminating Milan and Fiorentina en route, before beating rivals Hellas Verona 4–0 in the final. In the evening, when there was the anthem of the Champions League, hearing 80,000 people whistling us I realized what a mess we were in! "For us, as for the Argentines, Maradona is quite simply a god," explains Salvatore Esposito, a famous Neapolitan actor best known for the hit television series Gomorrah. Two Serie A titles and a Coppa Italia for a team that had bare silverware in its clubhouse, made Maradona almost as revered in the Campania region as the man sitting in the Vatican, 200 kms to the north. [61] However, since the 1920s, a singular blue tone has been used in the form of azure. [15] By August 2004, Napoli was declared bankrupt. "Yaya Tourè: "Al San Paolo mi tremavano le gambe, dopo l'inno capii in che guaio ci eravamo messi... "Unlikely friendships between rival Italian clubs", "Napoletani Ultras Plovdiv (Lokomotiv Plovdiv-Bulgaria)", "Napoli, gemellaggio coi tifosi del Borussia Dortmund", "Napoli-Psg, il gemellaggio ultrà: l'abbraccio nel nome di Maradona", "FOTO – Continua il gemellaggio tra Napoli e Celtic Glasgow", "Norme in materia di rapporti tra società e sportivi professionisti – Altalex", "Member associations – UEFA Coefficients – Club coefficients", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=S.S.C._Napoli&oldid=994402902, Association football clubs established in 1926, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with failed verification from February 2015, Official website different in Wikidata and Wikipedia, Articles with Italian-language sources (it), Articles with Spanish-language sources (es), Articles with Chinese-language sources (zh), Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 15 December 2020, at 15:17. The trace left by the famous number 10 goes beyond all possible borders. [2], As the club changed their name to Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli on 25 June 1964[2] they began to rise up again, gaining promotion in 1964–65. where can we buy the tickets? In the summer of 2000, Napoli retired the jersey number 10 belonged to former club legend Diego Maradona, who played for the club from 1984 to 1991. The Answer Is in the Cup". However, in the European Cup, they were eliminated in the second round. After a regulation 45-minute wait, the match was officially called off with Serie A describing it as “not played” on its website. [45] On 14 June 2020, Dries Mertens became Napoli's all time top scorer after scoring his 122nd goal in a Coppa Italia semifinal match against Inter. Maradona allowed the social redemption of an entire city. NAP vs ROM Dream11 Team Prediction Serie A 2020-21: Captain, Vice-captain, Fantasy Playing Tips And Predicted XIs For Today’s Napoli vs Roma Football Match at Stadio San Paolo, Naples … "You have to realise that Diego had enormous pressure," recalls Bianchi. When he arrived here, the city and the region were having great difficulty in recovering from the earthquake of 1980. [55] The record for most goals in a single league season belongs to Gonzalo Higuaín, with 36 in the 2015–16 Serie A. From 1984 to 1991, Maradona awakened an entire city with his genius, talent and personality as weapons. As regards exclusively the championship, however, the honour goes to the Argentine footballer Roberto Sosa, the distinction of being the last to wear the 10 at the San Paolo and at the same time to score in the match against Frosinone on 30 April 2006. [15] Solid performances from locally born players such as Giuseppe Bruscolotti, Antonio Juliano and Salvatore Esposito were relied upon during this period, coupled with goals from Giuseppe Savoldi. A sentence difficult to accept for a group of people who had almost imagined it was not possible. Serie A. Diego Maradona and Naples: a unique and endless love - Ottavio Bianchi and Salvatore Esposito ... For Naples and its inhabitants, the dreaded day … NAPLES, July 13, 2020 (Xinhua) -- AC Milan's Zlatan Ibrahimovic (R) vies with Napoli's Piotr Zielinski during a Serie A football match between Napoli and AC Milan in Naples, Italy, July 12, 2020. Since re-foundation in 2004, the clubs large numbers of supporter provided the main source of income, particularly through gate revenues and TV rights. where can we buy the tickets? During the same season, Napoli finished second in Serie A, just two points behind champions Juventus. [17], Napoli entered the Serie A era under the management of William Garbutt. The Covid-19 curfew and the restrictions didn't matter to him. Since 1959, the club has played their home games at Stadio San Paolo, and have traditionally worn sky blue shirts and white shorts. [21] Napoli moved to their new home ground Stadio San Paolo in 1959. [22] Their fourth relegation cut celebrations short the following season. it is possible to get in on the day, at the stadium? In the story, Odysseus had his men tie him to the ship's mast so he was able to resist the song of the siren. Italian Serie A Stadio Olimpico di Torino, Turin, Italy [15] Napoli's heaviest championship defeat came during the 1927–28 season when eventual champions Torino beat them 11–0. The Argentinian forward, who died at 60, helped Napoli to two Serie A titles in 1987 and 1990 3/3 SLIDES. [71], Unlike other Italian cities such as Genoa, Milan, Rome and Turin, Napoli is the only major football club in the city and therefore there is no derby in the strict sense of the term. The Stadio San Paolo was the only stadium during the competition where the Argentine national anthem was not jeered,[29] Maradona bowed to the Napoli fans at the end and his country went on to reach the final. ", For Salvatore Esposito, the feeling is the same. [19], The trend of Napoli performing well in the league continued into the 1970s, with third place spots in 1970–71 and 1973–74. Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli, commonly referred to as Napoli (pronounced [ˈnaːpoli]), is an Italian professional football club based in Naples, Campania that plays in Serie A, the top flight of Italian football. He also holds the record for league appearances with 408 over the course of 12 years from 2007 to 2019. This Sunday, Kalidou Koulibaly’s teammates lost their duel. The competition was founded in 1898 and has been functioning under the current double round-robin format since 1929-30. FIGC placed Napoli in Serie C1, where they missed out on promotion after losing 2–1 in play-offs to local rivals Avellino in 2004–05. Napoli also have a long-standing rivalry with Roma, and a rivalry with Palermo. The record for most goals in the league (also including the Divisione Nazionale tournaments) belongs to Attila Sallustro, with 106 goals,[55] while the highest scorer in Serie A is Antonio Vojak with 102 goals. [6], The first club was founded as Naples Foot-Ball & Cricket Club in 1905 by English sailor William Poths and his associate Hector M. The blue flags of Napoli flew through the streets of the city, while club scarves protected the inhabitants from the cold. [15], Napoli lost a closely contested relegation battle at the end of 1942 and were relegated to Serie B. Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. He immediately understood what this city was and what it needed. "For us, he was like a divine apparition. "No one in the world has ever had to put up with that, not the politicians, not the actors ... everywhere he went, he was pressed by public opinion, by supporters, by people who did not know football. [15] Napoli came very close to winning the league in 1967–68, finishing just behind Milan in second place. He always managed to dribble away from his problems, but not this time.". During this period, Napoli won their sole league titles, in 1987 and 1990. [34] The following season, they secured promotion to Serie B and De Laurentiis brought back the club's history, restoring its name to Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli in May 2006. Maradona will always be in my heart and in that of this city. see naples and conquer In the summer of 1984, SSC Napoli shocked the football world by announcing the signing of the best player on the planet. As Naples is a coastal city, the colours of the club have always been derived from the blue waters of the Gulf of Naples. Diego Maradona: How Naples has mourned its football 'god' Sky in Italy's Valentina Fass reports from Naples on the city's mourning and long farewell to … [15], On 26 July 2016, Gonzalo Higuaín became the third-highest football transfer of all-time and highest ever transfer for an Italian club[57] when he signed for €90 million to Juventus. [30], Though the club finished fourth during the 1991–92 season,[15] Napoli gradually went into decline after that season, both financially and on the field. Lorenzo Insigne of Napoli holds the shirt of the late Diego Maradona during the Serie A match between SSC Napoli and AS Roma at Stadio San Paolo on November 29, 2020 in Naples, Italy US Sassuolo vs Juventus . [15] Some of the most popular players from this period were Dino Zoff, José Altafini, Omar Sívori and hometown midfielder Antonio Juliano. 25th July, 2020. [15] Under the coaching of former player Luís Vinício, this gained them entry into the early UEFA Cup competitions. Some had even decided, around a simple table in the middle of a street, to recall good memories with the help of dozens of photos of the Argentine. Napoli then saw increased success in the 1980s, after the club acquired Diego Maradona. Their Diego had gone. The floodlights were turned on, the match day music was played and photographs showed Juventus players on the pitch in training kits -- with Napoli still in Naples. [74] Other friendships exist with Catania, Palermo,[75] Borussia Dortmund,[76] Everton, Paris Saint-Germain,[77] and Celtic. In the following season, Napoli finished in 3rd place on 86 points and were knocked out of the Champions League round of 16 against Real Madrid. Even while wearing masks. [37], In the 2011–12 season, Napoli ended in fifth place in Serie A, but defeated unbeaten champions Juventus in the Stadio Olimpico to win the Coppa Italia for the fourth time in club history, 25 years after their last cup win. VS. Torino vs AC Milan . Serie A Tips: Naples in the spotlight and Udinese to frustrate Lazio. He was our guide, everyone's army commander. The team finished second in its group of the 2011–12 UEFA Champions League, progressing to the round of 16, where they were eliminated by eventual winners Chelsea. They finished the 2014–15 season in fifth, with Benitez then signing for Real Madrid and being replaced by Maurizio Sarri. "Naples and Buenos Aires are two cities that are similar: in terms of mentality, way of life, and philosophy of life ... Naples has always accepted South American players with great enthusiasm. By attendance, Napoli have the fourth largest fanbase in Italy,[4] and were ranked as the fifth highest-earning football club in Serie A, with $182 million in revenue during the 2017–18 season. He was simply their god. During the Italian Serie A Football match SSC Napoli vs US Lazio on august 01, 2020 at the San Paolo stadium in Naples.In picture: CORREA Credit: Fabio Sasso/ZUMA Wire/Alamy Live News - 2C9P671 from Alamy's library of millions of high resolution stock photos, illustrations and vectors. From the youngest to the oldest, from the most fanatical to the most sober: everyone wanted to come together to mark the moment. Diego Maradona finished the season of Serie A as the league's top scorer, known in Italy as the Capocannoniere, in the 1987–88 season with 15 goals. This crest can be traced back to Internazionale Napoli, which used a similar design on their shirts. Marek Hamšík holds Napoli's official appearance record, having made 520. There, you understand what that player represents. It was the only time I remained on the pitch after losing a match, just to enjoy the show. [26] The club still won the Supercoppa Italiana that year, with a record 5–1 victory against Juventus, but it would be their last major trophy for 22 years.