Napoli - Operation Domination

Hello everyone and welcome to my new story with Italian football club, S.S.C. Napoli. After I brought back my Liverpool story, I came to the conclusion that my updates were untidy and rushed. So I have decided to start a fresh and take my time on a story that I believe can go a long way. (I have said that way too often)

I want to build a team with Napoli that can bring glory home to the Stadio San Paolo. My goals for the first season will be to have a good go at the Serie A title and to test ourselves at the highest level; in the Champions League. The Champions league will be very tough given the low pool we'll be drafted in to, so we'll be looking to scrap out 2nd place in our group.

What manager will I be using? Well, he isn't so much a club legend. You'd expect me to be using someone such as Maradona but no. I will be using none other than Italian legend Roberto Baggio.

Please give this a lot of support, I have finally found the motivation to write, I haven't felt this way since my old story with Poland and with your guys' help my motivation can only grow! Cheers guys

History

Napoli were founded in the year 1926 and have never really been one of the bigger teams until now. They have won two Serie A titles in the years of 1986-87 & 1989-90 which some people argue were won single handedly by the little argentine, Diego Maradona.

They have also won four Copa Italia's and a Supercoppa Italiana. They can also boast two Serie B's and a one Serie C1, which of course aren't competitions to get excited about, but trophies are trophies after all.

They don't hold a much of a reputation in Europe however they do have one UEFA cup that was won back in the 1988-89 season. Another trophy which is said to have been won by Diego Maradona.

So not much of a memorable history but they are better off than other clubs in that respect. This year will be their best chance to spark a revival in the world of football. Can Baggio be the man to start the fire?

Good luck Aaron, I hope you stick with this!

Good Luck mate!

I'm sure that this will be the story that you stick with! Good luck.

Five days after being appointed as Napoli head coach, Rafael Benitez has been relieved of his duties at the Italian club. Five days prior to this sacking Benitez was enjoying his opportunity to put pen to paper on a three year deal which would see him at the club until at least 2016. But now, the former Liverpool and Chelsea boss will not have his chance to fulfill what was asked of him by the Napoli board. Which no doubt was to bring glory to the club.

It is thought that the reason behind him being shown the way out is that he had a major falling out with club director Aurelio de Laurentiis and assistant manager Fabio Pecchia over certain transfer deals the club had been involved with.

According to a reliable source, Benitez wasn't given the funds to complete the signing of Roma left back Dodo, who was said to have been in advanced negotiations with Napoli. Benitez wasn't happy and decided it would be a good idea to take the argument further by calling the owner of the football club Filmauro S.R.L. The boss was not happy, and told the new manager to leave, and carry this spat no further.

Now, of course you would be very unhappy with the lack of faith your employers have in you. But Benitez went as far as throwing a punch at his assistant Fabio Pecchia after claiming he was being 'mocked' by his fellow employee. This ultimately led to the new managers sacking, and a bitter apology to the fans.

"Fans of Napoli. I am very sorry for the troubles I have caused at your club in these past few days. Throwing punches, is NOT acceptable, and I as a professional feel I have let down, myself, the club and more importantly the fans. Please do understand my frustrations. Whilst I should not be throwing punches, I also find it stupid that I would be hired and told to take the club to glory yet not given the money to this. It is their money, don't get me wrong. But taking this club forward with no money or support is impossible, and the directors no that. I wish the new manager all the best, and hope he can do what I couldn't. Thank you.

This is clearly a stressful time for Napoli football club. Everything was on the up, before it all came crashing back down. This year will probably be their last chance for a while to grow into one of the footballing giants. With the right signings, and the right manager, they can be a true force. But it all depends on the morale of the team, and the new manager.

The Azzurri seem to already have a few managers on their radar, With Sami Hyypia as the bookies favorites to take over as manager. Coaches like De Boer, Koeman, Jens Keller are also being closely watched.

All will be revealed soon and with Sami Hyypia having just recently been sacked by his employers at Bayer Leverkusen, it is no surprise that he is the favorite to take over, but if he does, can he really take a club like Napoli forward? He certainly has the credentials, but according to a lot of managers it isn't about your knowledge, it's about how you approach things. It's about being ballsy enough to make those tough decisions and to face up to the big teams like Juventus and Roma. Will Napoli make an impact this year?

Good luck mate, Serie-A is about old lady and becareful lol.
you should sell callejon :p

Good luck mate!

This is a good start mate, my Napoli save is the best I've ever done in any football manager so far to be honest! Hope you continue motivated to continue with this one.

Many fans of S.S.C. Napoli would have been expecting a new manager in the form of someone such as Michel Laudrup, or Sami Hyypia. Someone with at least a little bit of experience, but clearly the Napoli board have thought the better option would be to go with, one; A footballing great. Yet two; Someone who has never managed a team before.

Napoli have stunned everyone by hiring their new manager as Italian football legend; Roberto Baggio.
Baggio has never managed a football team before, and this is the very reason everyone is confused at his appointment. The new Azzuri head coach put pen to paper on the three year contract last night, and is looking to bring a revolution to the club.

Here he is talking with us this morning on signings, seasonal goals, and philosophies. When asked how he wants Napoli to play he responded with this;

"Well, I want Napoli to play the game the right way. The way it should be played. We want bring slick, entertaining, attacking football to the Serie A. Personally I am not a fan of the way most Italian sides play. They usually have a countering style to them in which they look to draw the opposition in and catch them on the break. Football isn't about that, it's about taking the game to your opponents and showing them up with the flair and creativity you possess."

We then asked Baggio what his transfer policy is like, and once again responded openly about his intentions.

"My policy? Well, personally I think it is the best type you can have. I will be looking to sign on the young and talented players that can help out our team. Most of our signings will possess first team quality but you can definitely expect a few that will either go straight into the youth teams or be back up to our first eleven for the first one or two years. I also must express to the fans...I am not here to make the club rich. I won't be selling players for profits I will be keeping the best players here so we can make this club the greatest in the land. Of course.

And when questioned on his goals for the upcoming season he told us this;

"For this season coming I want to challenge for fourth place in the table. I want Champions League this year, I want it the next and I want it forever on after. Of course, I want glory and trophies and so on but I think where the Serie A title and the Champions League is concerned, we'll have to do without. Certainly the Champions League. This year will be solely focused on readying the team for the next, and building the foundations to this team.

The little Italian has won two Serie A's, one with Juventus in 1995 and a his other one with A.C. Milan in the following season. He has also won the Coppa Italia with Juventus and even a UEFA Cup with he old lady in the 1992-93 season.

He also had a great time in the international team. Although not winning a single competition with them, he has reached third place in the tournament and even gone as far as the final where he virtually lost for his entire country, skying a penalty over crossbar.

He made 488 club appearances scoring 221 goals, and won himself 56 caps for Italy scoring 27 goals. He is considered one of the greatest players to have ever played for his country, but could he become considered one of the greatest managers?

Baggio would have expected Maradona as the new manager though

Nice start mate! Hopefully you can do more than i did with my Maradona at Napoli story!

It's early on in Roberto Baggio's career at Napoli, but he has made no hesitant actions towards settling in at the club. In the seven days he has been at the club he has already sold three players, two of them for a combined fee of £16 million Euros. Not bad for a man who 'isn't selling for a profit'.

The first player to leave the club was Camilo Zuniga. The right back left within just two days of Baggio being at the club, and was sold to mega rich club AS Monaco FC. He shouldn't have too much competition for a place in the squad with him being their only permanent right back, so some may consider this the best move for the 27 year old Colombian. He left for £8.75 million Euros.

The next to leave the club was Blerim Dzemaili. The central midfielder has left the club for £8.25 million Euros and will be looking to settle in quickly at his new club, Tottenham Hotspur. Some might say this isn't as good a move for the Swiss man as Zuniga's given that Spurs already hold the likes of Paulinho, Sigurdsson, Dembele and Eriksen in their arsenal.

And 22 year old Bruno Uvini has been the last (so far) player to leave the Azzuri. He has left for sunny Brazil, where he will play for title contenders, and creators of Neymar...Santos. Baggio gained an extra 275K out of this deal, which adds around £17 million Euros to his already pimped out transfer kitty of £40 million.


Our three signings this week all come in the form of young, talented players. Which like Baggio said, all consist of first team quality and flair. Or at least a little bit of flair...

Blaise Matuidi, has joined Napoli from Paris St Germain where he was looking seemingly comfortable. However it became apparent to the new Napoli boss that the defensive midfielder was unsettled, and he managed to chizzle the boy away from France for a surprise fee of £3.4 million. A truly brilliant bargain, some are saying we should expect more of this from Baggio. He is said to be an artist in negotiating. Whether there is any truth in that, who knows?

Elder Alvarez Balanta, then joined the Italian outfit for £8 million. You could say this is another fine deal. The centre back is supposedly one of the greatest young talents around and could be a legend in years to come. These last two deals really are an indicator to Baggio's uncertainty of his defense.

The last of all the 'Ins' this week as Rodrigo Gomez joins the club for £5 million. Gomez was having a great time over at Argentinos scoring a goal almost every game in his last season with the club. Clearly Baggio knows talent when he sees it. Also another signing to supposedly become a future star!

A number of players are said to be on the Napoli managers radar, with Nicusor Stanciu and AS Roma left back being just two of them. It seems the Napoli board have a lot of faith in Baggio with their money...More so than Benitez, who is no doubt a great manager! How odd...

Matuidi is always a good player, and you got rid of some deadwood. Well done!

Everyone:- Just want to say thank you to everyone for the early support! Haven't replied to anyone yet, so I thought I would do every reply in one go...Thank you!

After another week full of anticipation, Roberto Baggio has made his next four signings of the summer transfer window. He has strengthened the right back position after the loss of Camilo Zuniga and also brought in a young attacking midfielder to partner Hamsik in his 4-6-0 formation.

Another two central midfielders also join the crew. The two midfielders being more defensive than not, it seems Baggio really was disappointed with his defense, but hopefully not for long for fans of Azzuri.

Jon Flanagan...Yes. You heard that right. Jon Flanagan is the right back who has joined Napoli. Not on a permanent deal, but a loan deal. It was thought that game time was inevitable at Liverpool, however after the boy was listed for loan, Baggio pounced at the opportunity to bring the young Englishman in.

Joao Texiera, yes another Liverpool player, is your new attacking midfielder. Once again, only on loan but with just Hamsik as the only available option in the central attacking midfield position it seems the young man will get plenty of game time, good news for Liverpool fans of course but how will he fair at Napoli? Can he handle the pressure? And if so will his deal be extended or made permanent?

William Carvalho, will meet up with his old Sporting team mate at Napoli. He has joined for a fee of £2.5 million and is expected to partner up with other signing Blaise Matuidi. This boy is another star in the making and we think has the potential to become a footballing great! Baggio certainly loves his youth players!

And the last signing expected to be made this summer is Andrea Bertolacci. Another central midfielder who again is expected to get game time. Napoli did need central midfielders, however they have added three defensive midfielders to the two they already have! Is someone on the way out...?