With Round 12 done and dusted, it’s time we talked about the potential of a fully fit Victor Osimhen, the prospect of a refreshed Juventus squad, and whether or not, Roma can sustain a challenge for a top four finish.
By Matteo Bonetti, US Serie A expert
Victor Osimhen’s ceiling
“Victor’s on fire, your defence is terrified” was heard around the Maradona Stadium over the weekend, and it was the perfect tune to encapsulate just how lethal Napoli’s attack has been. With Osimhen finally healthy, the Partenopei have a much more dynamic weapon up front – the type of striker that puts fear into a defender because of his devastating pace and movement when he gets in behind. It isn’t just the raw speed that makes Osimhen so special, look at his clever movement inside of the box. He has a poacher’s instinct of knowing how to free himself at the last second from his marker and make himself a viable option for one of his teammates to pass to.
Against Sassuolo this weekend, Osimhen recorded his first ever Serie A hat-trick, continuing his incredible partnership with Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. Finally back from injury, Osimhen has scored six times in the five matches during the month of October. In the last two rounds, he scored both the winning goals – a sensational volley against Roma, and the go ahead goal the week before versus Bologna.
The question was never about Osimhen’s ability on the field. The only issue so far has been his injury problems, which have prevented him from playing a full season with Napoli after he became their most expensive ever transfer at €70m. Osimhen managed to score 24 goals total in his first two seasons at Napoli in only 39 league starts – a tally that makes you wonder just how great he can be if he manages to stay healthy and avoid these freak injuries (the orbital fracture against Inter comes to mind) which have taken away large chunks of his season.
At the moment, he’s healthy and scoring at an outrageous clip – 7 goals in 649 minutes of Serie A action is a world class return for any striker. Napoli need him more than ever with the Champions League knockouts coming up. Osimhen is the type of striker that can expose a modern attacking side that plays with a high back line. There aren’t many better players on the counter, at timing their run in behind, and punishing a defensive line that leaves gaps at the back.
Allegri unleashes the youngsters
After an embarrassing exit from the Champions League group stage, Max Allegri has finally given the green light to several players from the youth team who look ready to contribute on the senior squad.
Something had to change. A lot of the players Juventus have signed in the past few seasons have looked overrated and overpaid, a stark contrast to the hungry players from the “primavera” that seem to understand the pride and “weight” of the Juve badge when they step on the pitch.
The Juve manager has been harshly criticised this season, and rightfully so, but he deserves credit for the team selection against Lecce over the weekend. The two 19-year-olds Matias Soulé and Fabio Miretti both got the start as the creative forces behind the striker Arek Milik. The other youngster, Nicolo Fagioli, was brought on in the 46th minute for the disappointing Weston McKennie, and proved to be the deciding factor. Fagioli’s lone goal was a brilliant curling finish into the top corner which brought back memories of Alessandro Del Piero. Samuel Iling-Junior, the 19-year-old English winger, has also seen more time this last week, both in the Champions League and Serie A, bringing a much needed spark and dynamism.
With these four players from the youth team, Juventus looked quicker and sharper. New ideas from the creativity of Miretti and Soulé, the confidence of Fagioli and raw dynamism of Iling-Junior gave Juventus a much needed change from their stale form this season.
The biggest question now is whether or not this was simply a rotation round or a sign of things to come, a dramatic shift from Max Allegri knowing that what he’s done so far this season has been an utter disappointment.
Roma’s quiet progression and growing pains
Very quietly, Roma have won four out of their last five Serie A game, with the lone loss coming against red hot Napoli (a result you can forgive, if we’re being honest). The Giallorossi have also had an injury crisis of their own, with their two biggest summer signings, Paulo Dybala and Gini Wijnaldum, both missing through injury. This has meant that other attacking players have had to step up, which had led to mixed results.
Perhaps the most disappointing player has been Tammy Abraham. The English striker scored 17 times last season and was brutally unlucky, hitting the post or crossbar more than any other player in the league. This campaign has brought very different results – he’s been wasteful, not unlucky. Abraham’s xG (expected goals, which tell you how many goals a player should have scored given the chances they’ve had) is nearly three times higher than what he’s actually been able to score himself. Two league goals when he should be in the capocannoniere race tell you a lot of the story, Abraham hasn’t just lacked a clinical touch, but he’s missed sitters that look more like a player out of sorts mentally rather than from a talent standpoint. Abraham’s wide open chance on goal vs. Hellas Verona that he inexplicably sent wide was probably his worst miss of the season, with another shot clanging off the post right before halftime. Roma desperately need their talisman from last season to break out of this funk and start producing if they want to cement their place into the top four.
Apart from Abraham, Nicolo Zaniolo has also been an enigma. A few years ago considered the top Italian U21 talent, two brutal knee injuries in back-to-back seasons have seen his goal scoring touch all but disappear. The 23-year-old attacker only managed two goals in 28 appearances last season, and he only just now scored his first goal of this current campaign against Verona. Their star midfielder Lorenzo Pellegrini also hasn’t scored from open play in over a year.
The glass is half full though if you look at the bigger picture. Roma are in fourth place now despite the devastating injuries and lack of goal scoring from Zaniolo and Abraham. Once two key players like Dybala and Wijnaldum are fit, and their teammates are playing at the level we know they’re capable of, it seems like a top four place should become more of a certainty.
(Images from IMAGO)
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