Venezia could be the turning point for Højlund's goal drought

Another individual moment cost Napoli at Villarreal, where the striker chose a dribble over a pass yet again. He has not scored since the home defeat to Inter on 5 September.

by Gennaro SanninoThursday 15 October, 23:20 CET· 2 hours ago

Rasmus Højlund — Foto: VietnamJ25 · CC0

Rasmus Højlund had the ball at his feet, close to the goalkeeper, with a team-mate free in a better position. He chose to dribble again. Nothing came of it, and the picture that followed said everything: hands on his face, eyes down, head low. Napoli lost 3-1 at Villarreal.

Højlund had come close earlier in the game. He hit the post in the 22nd minute, after Rrahmani had put Napoli ahead in the 8th. Villarreal then turned the match around through Mikautadze and Mouriño, before Oluwaseyi sealed it in the 86th minute.

The Dane's own run without a goal now stretches back to 5 September, the night of the home defeat to Inter. Napoli's attacking options have been thin all season — Giovane has only been added to the rotation since the Villarreal game.

A deeper problem

The issue is simple and uncomfortable: a striker who is not scoring risks getting trapped in his own head, arriving in the box without the clarity to finish — or to find a team-mate in a better position. That is exactly what was seen in Spain, in a Napoli side that was already coming apart on its own: there was visible tension between De Bruyne and head coach Allegri on the bench in the second half, and Politano spoke afterwards about a lack of team spirit. Højlund's goal drought is not an isolated case; it is a symptom within a wider picture.

Saturday's game against Venezia becomes a double crossroads. For the team, which needs a response in the league after the 3-1 at Villarreal. And for Højlund, who needs a real celebration more than anyone else to end his drought.

The paradox is that Allegri is weighing rotation with a busy run of fixtures ahead, against Bodø/Glimt and then Roma. Lucca is a candidate to start, and resting Højlund has not been ruled out. If rotation takes him out of the game, the drought risks running on longer still, with no chance at the Penzo to end it.

Kick-off is at 15:00 CET (14:00 UK) on Saturday 17 October at the Pierluigi Penzo, and it will show whether Allegri chose to risk his most important striker or protect him for the European games ahead. Either way, the problem stays the same: Napoli, eighth in the table, cannot afford an attack that scores so rarely — and that, when it does score, tends to coincide with defeats.