Does Signing of Hirving Lozano Make Napoli a Good Bet to Win Italy’s Serie A?
By Robert Duff in Soccer News
Updated: March 26, 2020 at 11:35 am EDTPublished:
- Napoli have signed Mexican international winger Hirving “Chucky” Lozano
- Lozano scored 21 goals for PSV Eindhoven last season
- Napoli are the third-favorite in 2019-20 Serie A championship odds at +600
Has Napoli filled its void with the addition of Mexican star Hirving “Chucky” Lozano?
In preseason Serie A odds, the one area where Napoli was felt to be lacking was goal scoring. Mexican international winger Lozano potted 21 goals in 40 matches last season for Dutch side PSV Eindhoven.
Napoli is the third-favorite in the latest odds to win the Serie A crown in 2019-20.
2019-20 Serie A Odds
| Team | Odds |
|---|---|
| Juventus | -160 |
| Inter Milan | +500 |
| Napoli | +600 |
| AC Milan | +2000 |
| AS Roma | +3300 |
| Atalanta | +5000 |
| Lazio | +7500 |
| Fiorentina | +8000 |
| Torino | +10000 |
| Sampdoria | +20000 |
Odds taken on 08/21/19.
Napoli finished second in the Serie A table last season. Mighty Juventus won their eighth successive title.
Is Lozano Napoli’s Answer?
It’s been a long drought for Napoli. They’ve not won a Serie A crown since 1989-90, when Diego Maradona led them to glory.
Over the past nine seasons, Napoli have been on the cusp of greatness. Four times they’ve finished second, including each of the last two seasons. There’s also been three third-place showings over that span.
Hirving Lozano has landed in Rome! ✈️pic.twitter.com/OvdVV0OtQh
— SSC Nap⚽️li News (@SSCNapoliNews_) August 20, 2019
Heading into this season, whether Napoli could put the ball in the back of the other team’s net consistently enough to win a title was the side’s biggest question mark.
Napoli’s Aging Strike Force
With 74 goals, Napoli was second only to Atalanta (77) in goals for last season. Their strike force is aging, though. Forward Dries Merten, who netted 17 goals in league play last season, is 32.
Midfielder Jose Callejon is also 32. His goal production has dropped from 17 goals in 2016-17, to 12 in 2017-18 and to a dismal four goals last season.
Hirving Lozano would arrive today in Italy for € 42M. This makes it the most expensive signing in the history of @sscnapoli.
Good move for the 'Gli Azzurri'? 🇲🇽🔥 pic.twitter.com/bWSHmxnsdc
— FIG2 Football (@FIG2football) August 20, 2019
In $46 million purchase Lozano, they add a lethal finisher. He’s netted 40 goals the past two seasons. Lozano scored 70 times over the past four campaigns.
Napoli was second last season in fewest goals against (36) and goal differential (+38). However, they got stronger at the back, purchasing Greek international center-back Kostas Manolas for $38.7 million from AS Roma. Teamed with Senegalese center-back Kalidou Koulibaly, they’ll be a tough defense to crack.
Inter Milan Also Strengthened
Inter Milan, last season’s fourth-place finisher, also are looking to take a step forward.
They hired former Chelsea, Juventus and the Italian national team manager Antonio Conte. Inter Milan purchased striker Romelu Lukaku from Manchester United.
Lukaku ⚽️🔥
How many goals for Inter's new number 9 this season? 🤔#UCL pic.twitter.com/zFanILKCK4
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) August 21, 2019
They’ve been linked to a loan deal with Man United for midfielder Alexis Sanchez.
In addition, Uruguayan international defender Diego Godin was signed and Italian international midfielder Nicolo Barella added on loan from Cagliari.
Juventus Still the Kings
Napoli will earn Champions League participation again. They’ll finish top four in Serie A. Juventus may not dominate as much as in recent seasons. However, they remain the cream of the crop.
A first look at @aaronramsey in action for Juve ⚪️⚫️ pic.twitter.com/2HmZB0o6MA
— B/R Football (@brfootball) August 17, 2019
For example, Juve added three internationals this summer in Welsh midfielder Aaron Ramsey, Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt and French midfielder Adrien Rabiot.
With a roster that already featured Cristiano Ronaldo, Juventus won’t be beaten.
Sports Writer
An industry veteran, Bob literally taught the course on the history of sports at Elder College. He has worked as a Sports Columnist for Postmedia, appeared as a guest on several radio stations, was the Vice President of the Society For International Hockey Research in Ontario, and written 25 books.
