ROME (AP) – Beneath a huge mural of Diego Maradona, Napoli fans celebrated the Italian soccer title as if they were at the game – chanting, jumping and lighting torches.
Across Naples, at the stadium now named after Maradona, tributes to the club’s most iconic player were everywhere: his picture on banners, flags and scarves, his number 10 on the back of shirts.
As Napoli coach Luciano Spalletti put it after the Partenopei sealed their first league title since Maradona led the club to the 1987 and 1990 league titles, the late Argentine star’s legacy made a difference.
“These fans have seen great coaches come and go. You saw Diego Armando Maradona play and maybe his (influence) can be felt in this success as well,” said Spalletti.
Unlike the Maradona years, however, this Napoli title was not about a single player, but about a well-managed unit that often overwhelmed opponents with standouts in all departments: league top scorer Victor Osimhen as a centre-forward, league leaders Khvicha Kvaratskhelia on the left winger, passing expert Stanislav Lobotka in central midfield and physical presence Kim Min-jae at centre-back – not to mention her experienced coach.
Napoli lifted the trophy with a 1-1 draw at Udinese on Thursday.
Osimhen equalized for Napoli early in the second half by deflecting a rebound after Sandi Lovric gave Udinese an early lead.
“I’m happy for all Napoli fans worldwide,” said Osimhen. “Nobody deserves the Scudetto more than the Neapolitans – more than we do.
“I don’t care who scored, I just wanted to get the Scudetto.”
Napoli were an insurmountable 16 points clear of second-placed Lazio with five laps to go.
In addition to the 11,000 Napoli fans inside and 5,000 more outside the stadium in Udine, northern Italy, more than 50,000 spectators watched the game on jumbo screens at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona in Naples.
“Napoli, this is for you,” Spalletti said. “There are people here who can get through difficult moments in their life because they remember that moment. These people deserve all the joy.”
In Udine, cheering fans stormed onto the pitch after the final whistle, while in Naples there was fireworks and delirium.
“You always told me, ‘We want to win,’ and now we’ve won. We all won together,” Napoli President Aurelio De Laurentiis told the crowd at Napoli Stadium before hugging Napoli Mayor Gaetano Manfredi.
De Laurentiis took over the club in 2004 when Napoli were declared bankrupt and restarted in the third division.
“This is the culmination of a dream that has lasted 33 years,” added De Laurentiis. “It was a long process.”
It is the first time a club south of Italy’s traditional football capitals of Milan and Turin has won the league since Roma won the title in 2001.
Napoli equaled the record of clinching with five rounds remaining, shared with Torino (1947-48), Fiorentina (1955-56), Inter Milan (2006-07) and Juventus (2018-19).
In the 52nd minute, Osimhen repelled a shot from Kvaratskhelia after a corner kick.
During his goal celebration, Osimhen broke his face mask and the Nigerian striker was forced to play without it for a few minutes while it was repaired by Napoli staff on the touchline.
It was Osimhen’s 22nd league goal of the season and the 46th of his career in Serie A, making him the top African goalscorer in Italy alongside George Weah, former standout AC Milan and current Liberia president.
After that, Osimhen – who has admitted he would like to play in the Premier League one day – would not commit to staying at Napoli.
“I want to enjoy this moment for the rest of my life. Then my other dreams can come after the season,” said Osimhen. “But right now it’s not the time to talk about my other dreams. I wanted to win this. … For me, this is just a moment.”
Napoli had a brief first-half error that saw Lovric find space in the box to quickly control and deliver an angled shot into the far post in the 13th.
Napoli have dominated all season and haven’t lost in La Liga until they were beaten by Inter in January. A 5-1 win over Juventus nine days later left no doubt that this was the year of the Partenopei.
However, Napoli were not even considered title contenders ahead of the season with the departure of former captain Lorenzo Insigne, club record goalscorer Dries Mertens and defender Kalidou Koulibaly.
But Osimhen has emerged as the league’s most prolific striker and dribbling magician Kvaratskhelia has done much more than replace Insigne on the left wing in one of Europe’s biggest revelation this season.
The title also gives Spalletti the one honor he has most coveted, having previously managed Roma and Inter and won two Russian championships with Zenit St Petersburg.
Spalletti’s innovative style was first demonstrated at Udinese almost two decades ago, when he led the provincial club to fourth place and a place in the Champions League. Udinese manager Andrea Sottil played under Spalletti at Udinese.
“The fans deserve it,” said Napoli captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo, whose hair was dyed Napoli blue from the dressing room celebration. “It felt like we were playing in Naples today.”
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