The international “break” may be a temporary reprieve from domestic football, but the football never really stops. In early October, the world’s top club players dispersed around the globe to compete in international friendlies, UEFA Euro qualifiers and FIFA World Cup qualifiers. For Napoli, 13 players were called up by their respective nations, including André-Frank Zambo Anguissa, who did not travel due a thigh muscle injury suffered against Fiorentina. Amir Rrahmani, who captains a Kosovo side that is not likely to advance from Euro Qualifying Group I, was left out for the same reason. Meanwhile, the return of Domenico Berardi to the Nazionale kept Matteo Politano out of the Italy squad. Even after the departures of Nicoló Zaniolo and Mattia Zaccagni – the former caught up in yet another Calcioscommesse betting scandal and the latter suffering an ankle injury – Politano remained in Napoli with a short-lived bout of the flu.
For the football enthusiast, the international break provides an opportunity to see players in a different light, often playing alongside interesting but largely unknown players. Erling Haaland’s 18-year-old strike partner Antonio Nusa continues to steal the headlines for Leo Østigård’s Norway. Eljif Elmas and Enis Bardhi are typically the stars for North Macedonia, but goalkeeper Stole Dimitrievski lived up to his name, stealing the show in their 2-0 defeat to Ukraine. With Bardhi on the bench for North Macedonia’s friendly against Armenia, Elmas wore the captain’s armband for the first time in his international career.
Likewise, with Robert Lewandowski recovering from an ankle injury, Piotr Zielinski made his debut as Poland captain in his 85th international appearance. He also reverted to the number 10 for the first time since 2014. The 10 certainly suited Zielinski more than the 9 suited Jens Cajuste, who did not feature in Sweden’s friendly victory over Moldova and played only 45 minutes in Sweden’s Euro qualifier against Belgium. Perhaps he would have played longer, but the match, which was of little consequence for either side given their respective positions in the Group F table, was abandoned at halftime after reports of a terrorist attack in Brussels.
Meanwhile, those who didn’t captain their nations, such as Stanislav Lobotka, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Mathias Olivera, contributed with goals. Olivera scored the first of two equalizers in Uruguay’s 2-2 draw against Colombia in World Cup qualifying. Lobotka scored a screamer from distance in the pouring rain in Portugal. The Slovakia midfielder pointed to the heavens, perhaps dedicating the goal to his recently-deceased father. The strike was of such high quality that even superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, who scored a brace in the match, felt obliged to acknowledge it.
After nearly 11 months without an international goal, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia scored in back-to-back matches for Georgia. The young phenom came off the bench to score Georgia’s eighth goal in a (not so) friendly rout of Thailand. That boosted the winger’s confidence ahead of a Euro qualifier against Cyprus. Kvaratskhelia scored a goal and added an assist in the 4-0 victory. Though he was not credited with an assist on the opening goal, it was Kvaratskhelia’s drive and determination that led to the goal. Two days later, the Napoli starlet capped off a memorable week by marrying his longtime girlfriend Nitsa Tavadze.
For all the goals, there are many Napoli supporters, especially those who consider themselves champions in Italy rather than of Italy, who view the absence of club football as painful and drab. The October international break was certainly agonizing, albeit for different reasons, but was anything but dull.
Only two days after Napoli’s 1-3 defeat to Fiorentina, club president Aurelio De Laurentiis expressed concerns about his manager. “I’m having a bad time with him. I am an entrepreneur, I have a duty to take an interest in my business. The coach and sports director are at your service,” he said, speaking at the Luiss round table in Rome. “I will make the most appropriate decisions when the time comes to make them. The square cannot condition [these decisions]. You must always take a reflective pause. Every hasty decision is wrong. We need to mitigate this need to have everything immediately, it’s not possible in life. Head down, pedal and work. Life is life. Panta Rei, everything flows, we’ll see.”
The quote immediately sent the media into a frenzy, speculating on potential replacements for Garcia. The lead candidates were Antonio Conte and Igor Tudor. De Laurentiis met with Conte at the luxurious Hotel de Russie in Rome on the 11th of October, presumably intent on convincing the Lecce native to take the helm of Napoli. However, the meeting did not result in agreement. According to Italian media, Conte sought a three-year contract with an annual salary of €8 million net (or €48 million gross), in addition to the cost of his coaching staff. Meanwhile, De Laurentiis was only willing to pay €48 million gross for Conte and his staff combined.
In an interview on Rai’s Belve, Conte confirmed he was not interested in taking a position mid-season. “Rome and Naples are certainly two places that I would like to experience for the passion they transfer to you. I hope that one day there will be the opportunity to have this experience…[not now] because they are already compromised situations.”
And so, De Laurentiis, now a regular presence in training, retracted his previous comments and denied the links to Conte. “I went on holiday with him years ago in the Maldives. His wife was there, his daughter was there, we maintained our relationship, even when he went to England, just as I continue to feel about Ancelotti, as I continue to feel about Ancelotti before he came to Napoli, how I continue to feel about Mazzari, as I continue to feel about Rafa Benitez, about Eddy Reja, who I found behind [sitting] behind me at one of the last matches at the stadium. So I want to say that, for me, the fact that rumours are created that can contribute to the deplorable, maniacal demolition of whoever is in charge of the technical management of Napoli annoys me.”
De Laurentiis had plenty else to say In the same hour-long press conference. Beyond commenting on Calcioscommesse, Serie A television rights, Edoardo discovering Kvaratskhelia, (not Giuntoli) and the Supercoppa Italiana, the Napoli owner opined on Victor Osimhen’s latest injury.
Osimhen was taken off at the hour mark in Nigeria’s friendly against Saudi Arabia. The initial reports were that the Napoli striker was removed for precautionary reasons after a seemingly harmless tackle. However, before the club’s official confirmation, word quickly spread that the injury might have been more serious.
“After the injury suffered in the national team, Victor Osimhen was examined today and underwent further tests which highlighted a medium-grade lesion of the hamstring of the right thigh.”
For the second time since joining Napoli, Osimhen will miss an extended period of time as a result of an injury suffered during an international break. In 2020, only two-and-a-half months after joining Napoli, Osimhen suffered a shoulder injury in Africa Cup of Nations qualifying, causing the striker to miss 14 club matches across all competitions. Osimhen missed two additional matches that season, including the Supercoppa Italiana final against Juventus, after contracting Covid-19 while visiting family in Nigeria.
If De Laurentiis were to have his way, clubs who spend significant sums of money to acquire players would decide whether their players participate in international friendlies. Moreover, if national teams were required to compensate clubs for a player’s salary while he recovers from an injury suffered in international competitions, then governing bodies such as UEFA and FIFA would think twice about overburdening players with too many matches. At the moment, clubs absorb all the risk. Osimhen is expected to miss four to six weeks with the injury.
The Nigerian joins Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa on the recovery table. Though the midfielder was called up for Cameroon’s international friendlies, he did not participate after the club confirmed a low-grade injury to his left hamstring. Thus, Garcia will be without two key players for Saturday’s trip to the Bentegodi.
The match against Hellas Verona will be the first of six matches in 23 days. At the moment, Garcia has the full support of the club and his players. However, the results on the pitch will determine whether he survives until the next international “break”.
