Walter Mazzarri’s brief tenure as Napoli coach has come to an end after just three months, as the seasoned manager is replaced by Slovakia’s Francesco Calzona. The Serie A champions made this change just 48 hours before their first leg encounter against Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League last-16 tie in Naples. Mazzarri, who won six out of 17 games during his tenure, departs with Napoli positioned ninth in the league standings.
Napoli has relieved head coach Walter Mazzarri of his duties and appointed current Slovakia manager Francesco Calzona, merely two days before their pivotal UEFA Champions League last-16 showdown with Barcelona. The team’s Serie A campaign faced difficulties from the beginning this season, with the departure of title-winning manager Luciano Spalletti, followed by Rudi Garcia’s dismissal in November, and Mazzarri’s subsequent failure to reverse the situation. A late 1-1 draw against Genoa prompted Napoli’s third coaching change since last summer, just before their encounter with Barcelona.
In a statement on social media, Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis expressed gratitude to Walter Mazzarri for his support during a challenging period and extended a warm welcome back to Francesco Calzona, who has previously worked with the club under both Maurizio Sarri and Luciano Spalletti. Despite being reigning champions, Napoli currently sits in ninth place in the Serie A standings, trailing league leaders Inter Milan by 27 points and the top four by nine points.
A string of poor performances, including just one win in five games across all competitions, prompted De Laurentiis to make the coaching change prior to Barcelona’s visit to Campania. Under Mazzarri’s guidance, Napoli experienced a decline, winning six games out of 17 and slipping from fourth to ninth place in the standings. Despite hopes for improvement following a busy January transfer window, which saw the arrival of Cyril Ngonge, Leander Dendoncker, Hamed Traore, and Pasquale Mazzocchi, Napoli continued to struggle.
Francesco Calzona has a history with Napoli, having previously served as an assistant to Maurizio Sarri and Eusebio Di Francesco at various clubs. He returned to Napoli to work under Spalletti before being appointed as Slovakia’s manager in the summer of 2022, leading the team to Euro 2024 qualification. Calzona will continue to manage Slovakia during the upcoming Euro 2024 tournament.
Napoli performance and stats
Napoli is currently 2nd in the Champions League with 10 points.
In the last 6 games, it has won 3 times, drawn once, and lost twice. In its last match, Napoli won 2-0 against Sporting Braga.
It has a positive goal difference after scoring 10 goals and conceding 9.
Napoli will play the next match in Champions League against FC Barcelona on Wednesday 21st of February in Napoli. The prediction is FC Barcelona winning the match.