Lucca heads for January exit as Napoli sound out Varela's

Lucca heads for January exit as Napoli sound out Varela's agents

Sporting director Giovanni Manna is studying several strikers at once, and Monza's Portuguese forward is first on the list but not the only name. Whether any of them arrives depends on results.

by Rosaria CimminoSaturday 14 November, 19:07 CET· 41 min ago

Lorenzo Lucca — Foto: Original: Giova36 / Derivative work: Danyele · CC BY-SA 4.0

Napoli have already met the agents of Gustavo Varela, the Portuguese forward born in 2005 who is owned by Monza. It was a first contact to gather information and test the ground. It is not yet a negotiation.

Sporting director Giovanni Manna is moving now for one reason. Lorenzo Lucca, the striker from Moncalieri, could leave as early as January for another Italian club. If he goes, the attack needs a replacement straight away.

Nobody is surprised that Lucca is first in line for the exit. He has not scored in the league. In Porto he clashed with De Bruyne. Against Lazio, in the 86th minute, he went for a ball meant for McTominay and shot wide. On Sunday 8 November the Maradona whistled him, along with Lang. The fanbase made up its mind weeks ago, and the club appears to have reached the same conclusion.

Varela leads a long list

Varela is the first name for the attack. He is Serie A's top scorer with 9 goals in 10 games, one of them against Napoli. Monza value him at €30-40m.

There is a catch. Benfica, who sold him to Monza, kept 20% of any future profit and the right to match any offer, which in practice means they could take the player from under Napoli's nose at the last moment. Monza might settle for around €15m plus Lucca or Giovane on loan. If Lucca were part of the deal, his exit and his replacement would be sorted in a single move.

Manna is not stopping there. His method is to sound out many profiles at once, compare their qualities and costs, and choose only at the end. The other names are known. Camello of Rayo Vallecano has 7 goals and 2 assists in 11 La Liga games, is valued at about €10m and is under contract until June 2027; the sporting director sees him specifically as Lucca's replacement. Then there is Zirkzee, whom Manchester United are willing to loan with an option to buy at around €30m plus add-ons.

A problem that should have been solved in the summer

The method makes sense. But a question has to be asked. In the summer Allegri asked for a striker, the name was Gabriel Jesus, and he never came. The result is an attack in which Højlund has 3 goals in 13 appearances and his deputy has yet to score. Taking time and sounding everyone out in January is prudent, but this should have been fixed earlier. Had someone chosen with the same care in the summer, Napoli would not be repairing their attack halfway through the season.

Then there is the money. January will be a window of swaps, paid for with sales, and at least three significant ones are needed. Lucca alone is not enough to fund any of the three targets.

Any signing also comes with a condition: Napoli must be within four, at most five, points of fourth place. As of Saturday 14 November they are tenth on 15 points, 9 behind Milan.

So Manna's plans depend above all on the pitch. Torino visit the Maradona on Saturday 21 November at 20:45 CET (19:45 UK, 14:45 ET), and another slip would make every enquiry pointless. On Monday 30 November the commission will rule on the clubs' accounts. Without points, Varela and the rest remain nothing more than enquiries.