Napoli's Greatest All-Time Serie A XI - But Only Picking One Player From Each Country
Challenging for the Serie A title isn’t for everyone and that’s certainly been the case for Napoli during the 2019/20 season, despite some previously lofty expectations.
But even if performances on the pitch have fallen short of the mark, Gli Azzurri remain a side filled with passion, both on the field and in the stands.
Napoli have an illustrious history and have signed stars from across the globe, many of whom have reached the very top of the game.
But what if you were tasked with picking an all-star team with only one player per nationality allowed? Well, look no further. Let's get into it.
GK: Pepe Reina (Spain)
The keeper who keeps on keeping. Seriously, when is this guy going to retire? He's like football’s answer to The Undertaker, though Aston Villa fans will probably be hoping this is his last ride, going off his first handful of appearances for the Villans.
Reina has been a true servant to the game and did a decent job as Napoli keeper in his two spells at the club. A loan stint in the 2013/14 season saw Napoli win the Coppa Italia, but Reina waited until 2015 before permanently joining the club, instead spending a term as Manuel Neuer's understudy at Bayern Munich.
The Spaniard went on to make a further 139 appearances for the Serie A side, though silverware would continue to evade the club.
RB: Elseid Hysaj (Albania)
Hysaj is regularly touted with moves away from Napoli, with Chelsea one such club rumoured to be in for him at one stage, but so far the Albanian has remained loyal to I Partenopei.
The 26-year old is an excellent passer of the ball and his physical presence has seen him become one of the most feared right backs in Serie A, making 134 league appearances during his time at Stadio San Paolo.
He was also part of the Napoli sides that finished second in Serie A during the 2015/16 and 2017/18 season.
CB: Ciro Ferrara (Italy)
Ferrara was the Ferrari of centre backs. He had it all; composure, passing, and bundles of versatility, and was widely considered to be one of the best defenders in the world at his prime.
He established himself as a world beater at Napoli, playing his football there for nearly a decade. Ferrara also scored one of Napoli’s goals as they won the 1989 UEFA Cup final, while he won two Serie A titles, one Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa Italiana with the club.
Ferrara was always going to get into this team, and it would’ve been a crime if he had been left out. A true leggenda in the world of football.
CB: Kalidou Koulibaly (Senegal)
It was once said that you have a better chance of kicking out of an F5 from Brock Lesnar than getting past Koulibaly.
The Senegal defender is a monster, with his size and raw strength there for all to see. He's the linchpin to the current Napoli defence, has made over 170 appearances in Serie A and is well on his way to becoming a club legend.
In the 2014 Supercoppa Italiana against Juventus Koulibaly scored the winning penalty in the shootout to give Gli Azzurri the victory, proving he's a player who can hold his nerve.
LB: Ruud Krol (Netherlands)
Perhaps one of the most important defenders in Dutch history, Krol was the Swiss Army knife of players, but one of his most prominent positions was left back.
Starting out at hometown club Ajax, he was a don on the international scene and helped the Netherlands to World Cup finals in 1974 and 1978. Krol was part of Ajax’s golden generation of players and was one of the last to leave, departing for Canadian team Vancouver Whitecaps.
One season later and he was on his way to Italy to play for Napoli. The rest is history - the Dutchman become one of the club's most popular players ever, spending four years in Naples and making over 100 appearances.
CM: Marek Hamšík (Slovakia)
Hamšík is that friend who never went to university, instead staying at home to make a name for himself.
Where do you even start on this man? The term 'legend' doesn’t come close. Hamšík arrived at the club in 2007 after the Italian side secured promotion from Serie B, and brought with him maturity, class, and large amounts of hair gel.
The Serie A title proved to be allusive during his time at Napoli, but his legacy is a trophy in itself. Kind of.
In terms of actual silverware, he lifted the Coppa Italia twice and the Supercoppa Italiana once, and will always be regarded as a Naples legend.
CM: Gökhan Inler (Switzerland)
Underrated is a word that sums up Inler pretty well. The Swiss midfielder was already a proven player at Udinese before he signed for Napoli in 2011. So how do you think the club unveiled their new signing?
They made him wear a lion mask. For a moment it seemed as though Gli Azzurri were under the impression that Joe Exotic was going to do a job for them in the middle of the park.
During his time at Napoli he become known for his no-nonsense tackling approach, though the negative side of that tactic shone through when he was sent off during Napoli’s Coppa Italia win over Fiorentina in 2014.
Funnily enough, Inler joined Leicester for the 2015/16 season when he left Naples, though only made five Premier League appearances due to the barnstorming form of N'Golo Kante and, er, Danny Drinkwater.
RW: Careca (Brazil)
Careca was a striker by trade, but Napoli have had some of the best attacking players to ever step onto a pitch, so for the purpose of this list we're going to cheat a little bit and stick him on the wing.
The Brazilian had the uncanny ability of being in the right place at the right time. He also had plenty of pace in his arsenal and oh boy did he utilise it.
He is considered one of the best Brazilian forwards ever and made a real impact for Napoli when he signed in 1987. He became part of the infamous ‘Ma-Gi-Ca’ partnership, which saw him link up with Diego Maradona and Bruno Giordano as they terrorised Serie A.
During his time in Naples he netted 95 times as helped Napoli to a Serie A title in 1990.
AM: Diego Maradona (Argentina)
If Diego Maradona was an animal, he'd be a....GOAT
The man is widely considered to be one of the best footballers to ever grace the game. At Napoli, he was at the forefront of a revolution and helped the club obtain many plaudits during the most successful period of their history in the late 1980s.
He helped his beloved Argentina win the 1986 World Cup as many England fans will bitterly remember.
LW: Dries Mertens (Belgium)
Since 2013, Mertens has been putting in career-defining performances for Napoli. The Belgian attacker has been a loyal servant to the club and his loyalty has been rewarded with eternal admiration from Gli Azzurri.
During his time in Italy he has made 226 appearances in Serie A, scoring 90 times and providing 51 assists. However, his time at Napoli could come to an end this summer when his contract expires, while Gattuso hasn't used him as frequently as former boss Carlo Ancelotti.
If this is the end for Mertens then he can leave Napoli with his head held high, having carried the club's goalscoring burden on his back for much of his seven-year stay in Italy.
ST: Edinson Cavani (Uruguay)
The striker position for Napoli is a hard choice. It could’ve easily been Gonzalo Higuaín, but it’s Cavani who pips him to the post.
Current Paris Saint-Germain star Cavani is a deadly striker and will be remembered for exploding onto the European scene with Napoli, scoring a total of 104 goals in 138 matches.
The Uruguayan left for PSG in 2013 in a deal worth €64m and it saw him link up with former Napoli teammate Ezequiel Lavezzi.