Badiashile injured again, set to miss Monza, Juventus and Porto

The Chelsea loanee is the 12th Napoli player to reach the treatment room this season. A final diagnosis is due on Monday 26 October, with a return after the international break the most likely outcome.

by Gennaro SanninoSunday 25 October, 19:09 CET· 6 hours ago

Badiashile con la maglia del Chelsea — Foto: seb4stien.substack.com

Benoît Badiashile went off injured at the start of the second half of Napoli's 3-3 draw with Roma, leaving the pitch with his hands over his face. He is the 12th Napoli player to land in the treatment room this season.

Early reports point to the left thigh, in the biceps femoris area. It is the same muscle, in the same leg, that has stopped the centre-back seven times in recent years between Monaco and Chelsea. He was helped off by the medical staff and touched his face as he went: he seemed to know straight away that something was wrong.

The club had tried to protect him. He sat out the midweek game against Bodø/Glimt to avoid overload, and head coach Allegri explained it this way: "He had a muscle injury and was coming off months without playing: I rested him on Tuesday on purpose, unfortunately he has relapsed." It is a relapse, as with Alisson Santos and Neres before him. Three muscles giving way after a return no longer looks like coincidence, and the question about how the squad's fitness is managed is hard to avoid.

The first tests are due on Sunday 25 October, but a clear picture will take at least 48 hours. The faces of the medical staff at the Maradona did not suggest much optimism. The fear is of a long layoff, though some hope remains. The most likely scenario is that Badiashile is available again only after the international break. That would rule him out of the trip to Monza on Wednesday 28 October, the Champions League games against Juventus and Porto, and probably the Lazio match on Sunday 8 November.

The timing is cruel. After a slow start, the Frenchman was beginning to convince with his physical presence and his reading of the game. Alongside Rafa Marín he formed a pairing that held firm against Roma, and it was arguably the Spaniard's best game since joining Napoli. Then Beukema came on. The next-day verdicts blame him for two of Roma's three goals.

Worst defensive start since 1997/98

Napoli have conceded 17 goals in their first 11 official games. A start this poor has not been seen since 1997/98, and only last season matched it. This is not a problem caused by one injury. But every time a centre-back is missing, the squad is stretched further, and the question about how it was built belongs with those who built it. Badiashile arrived on loan from Chelsea with that medical history already behind him.

There is some less gloomy news. Di Lorenzo was replaced late on by Spinazzola, to groans from the crowd, but he came off with a heavy blow to the knee picked up against Bodø/Glimt. He played through it for as long as he could. His condition is not a concern and the captain should be available as normal.

Allegri has already looked ahead: "We think about Monza, Juventus and Porto." It starts on Wednesday 28 October at 20:45 CET (19:45 UK, 14:45 ET) at the U-Power Stadium, against a Monza side on 7 points. Napoli will have to find a defence without one of its pillars, and a way of not repeating the mistakes against Roma. The answer from the tests comes on Monday 26 October.