https://www.corrieredellosport.it/n..._al_napoli_ecco_tutte_le_cifre_delloperazione If I understood correctly, Spaletti is on a 2-year deal and that Napoli will sell one or two players (Ruiz and Koulibaly?) to have money to play with this summer for more reinforcements.
I would sell zielinski, get de paul and keep ruiz - you don't win championships with players like zielinski : lazy number 10s who perform well 25%, average or bad for the remaining 75%. Winning teams have midfielders that control the game like ruiz and de Paul. I wouldn't even consider zielinski a midfielder tbh. If we sell zielinski, insigne and k2 we can actually afford to build a top 4 team.
If Zielinski, Ruiz, and Insigne have good a Euro, then Napoli just might sell them. Elmas could attract looks his way too. I think Spaletti is reluctant to sell and find new players other than to balance the books and reinforce the squad. I doubt we see any big signings. He'll want to keep Insigne and probably Zielinski. Ruiz I think wants to go. Likewise Koulibaly. We'll see.
I know you like zielinski but at the end of the day is he the one carrying this team on a bad day? He is being played in the most optimal position to be creative, he should have done more at the end of last season. How many number 10s are out there in top football? Let me tell you: there are no (old school) number 10s in modern football. Only mason mount gets played in a role like that but he works his ass off as well to compensate for having 1 less midfielder. If zielinski adds work ethics I would keep him. But imo Fabian is definitely the better player, there is also a reason big clubs want fabian, and no one is serious about Piotr. We will probably end up keeping both anyway and have an unbalanced midfield for another season. unbalanced because zielinski lacks basic CM attributes like reading play, being positioned correcly, getting rid of the ball productively and timing. If we play a 433 which I think Spaletti wants I personally think Zielinski is the weak point - he is not a midfielder, never was. Its a shame with zielinski because he is such a top baller. he needs the right manager to become a top midfielder
Spalletti won't be making many changes. He'll fine tune a few things here and there, bring in players of similar or somewhat lesser quality than their replacements at most. He'll bring in a few trusted hands into the dressing room to maintain some control. He needs to get the players to play smarter and in a system that comes second nature to them. It might take a little time to develop. @Sacki True. Atalanta have Illicic, maybe the last of the classic 10s. There's no room tactically for Messi or Cristiano to stand around waiting for the ball anymore. Everyone has to work their ass off now. The game is faster than ever now and seasons are even bigger marathons. Does Napoli need more grit? Perhaps less complacency, but I too will argue the problem is grit. Spalletti signed Nainggolan for that reason when he went to Inter. It didn't pan out as hoped because Nainggolan couldn't get his act together. I don't know who Napoli can bring in who could have the desired effect. When Barcelona signed Ronaldinho, they found their magic again, but things weren't working for them until they brought in that bulldog Davids. Zlatan did it for Milan and look at them now. Players with a hard edge and real attitude will pull this team across the finish line, even if it means dragging a few guys through the mud. Sometimes that makes the difference. Napoli have the quality, it's just a question of pulling the team across that line.
Agree with most, but there is room for number 10s out there: they just have to be extraordinary like Messi, Neymar or CR7 etc.
When the game was slower, there was room for players who had the ability to create space against 11 defenders, but now the game is more about taking advantage of the space that emerges between transitions and capitalizing on mistakes as a result of high pressing. A lot of classic #10s are slow and lackadaisical, they can't defend or press. Today's game demands players who are fast, super fit, athletic, and can win back the ball. Not many teams allow for a player like Ilicic as a result. The same is true of classic goal poachers, like Gerd Muller or Filippo Inzaghi, there's no room for them anymore. They have made way for players like Andrea Belotti. I remember when Ernesto Valverde was coach of Olympiacos. Everyone at the time understood he would manage Barcelona one day, which he did. At Olympiacos, he built the team around a fella named David Fuster. This guy worked his ass off and closed opponents down. He gave everything on the pitch. The fans loved him. Yet he wasn't a creator, he was a destroyer. He had more in common with Gattuso than Pirlo. He was playing what was normally the role of a classic #10. It's the sort of approach you would expect from someone like Tony Pulis or Roland Maran. It was hyper defensive, not the kind of approach you would expect from someone who was destined to coach Barcelona, but that's the way a lot of top managers now think.
Spalletti's biggest deficiency is his man management skills. He took a bad situation at Inter and made it worse by inserting himself into the drama between the players. Other than that, it was the most low risk coach that Napoli could have appointed because of the 4-2-3-1 that he also plays. As far as I know, he has made no special demands for specific players, so the technical project remains the same