Serie A transfer market grades: Juventus and Napoli
Last season’s top two in the Serie A – Juventus and Napoli – were two of the most active clubs in Europe during the summer transfer window. Playingfor90 grades how well the peninsula’s UEFA Champions League representatives recruited during the mercato.
Juventus
(Photo by Power Sport Images/Getty Images)
Arrivals: Gonzalo Higuain (£76.50m), Miralem Pjanic (£27.20m), Marko Pjaca (£19.55m), Mario Lemina (£8.08m), Juan Cuadrado (£4.25m loan fee), Medhi Benatia (£2.55m loan fee), Dani Alves (free transfer).
Total: £138.13m
Departures: Paul Pogba (89.25m), Alvaro Morata (£25.50m), Roberto Pereyra (£11.05m), Simone Zaza (£4.25m loan fee), Mauricio Isla (£3.40m), Hordur Magnusson (£2.13m), Marcel Buchel (£1.02), Vincenzo Fiorillo (£850k), Gabriel (£850k), Simone Padoin (£510k), Andrea Schiavone (£340k).
Total: £139.15m
Grade: A+
Juventus sporting director, Beppe Marotta, proved once again that he is the most impressive negotiator in calcio this summer. La Vecchia Signora, despite selling Paul Pogba and Alvaro Morata, added quantity and quality to their squad during the mercato. The record-breaking signing of last season’s Capocannoniere, Gonzalo Higuain from Napoli, and the signing of Miralem Pjanic from A.S. Roma simultaneously strengthened Juventus and weakened their closest rivals on the peninsula, leading many to believe that Max Allegri’s side will have the Scudetto wrapped up in record-breaking time this season.
Although Juve spent nearly £40 million more than any other Serie A team, the club signed a number of world-class players for miniscule fees. The arrivals of Juan Cuadrado on a three-year loan deal and Medhi Bentia on a one-year loan deal for a combined £6.8 million are two examples of Marotta’s ability to sign proven talent for small fees.
After signing Andrea Pirlo, Sami Khedira, Paul Pogba, Fernando Llorente and Kingsley Coman on free transfers in recent years, La Vecchia Signora have repeated the trick this summer by signing Dani Alves for £0 from Barcelona. The 33-year-old will provide Juve with UEFA Champions League winning experience, and could prove to be the final piece in the puzzle for the club in their search for European glory.
S.S.C. Napoli
(Photo by Francesco Pecoraro/Getty Images)
Arrivals: Arkadiusz Milik (£27.20m), Amadou Diawara (£12.33m), Piotr Zielinski (£11.90m), Lorenzo Tonelli (£8.50m), Nikola Maksimovic (£4.25m loan fee), Emanuele Giaccherini (£1.28m), Marko Rog (£1.28m loan fee).
Total: £66.73m
Departures: Gonzalo Higuain (£76.50m), David Lopez (£3.40m), Mirko Valdifiori (£2.98m), Mariano Andujar (£387k), Alberto Grassi (£340k loan fee), Soma Novothny (£128k).
Total: £83.73m
Grade: B+
Like A.S. Roma, S.S.C Napoli lost their most valuable asset to Juventus this summer. Although the news was greeted with the burning of clubs shirts and the defacement of billboards, Napoli’s £75.50 million sale of last season’s top scorer, Gonzalo Higuain, could prove to have been shrewd business from the southern club.
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Due to the sale, Napoli have been able to add some much-needed strength-in-depth ahead of their UEFA Champions League campaign. The signings of Amadou Diawara, Piotr Zielinski, Lorenzo Tonelli, Nikola Maksimovic and Emanuele Giaccherini will allow Maurizio Sarri to rotate his starting line-up effectively throughout the 2016/17 season.
Eyebrows were raised when Napoli opted to replace Higuain with Arkadiusz Milik; a player who failed to impress at Euro 2016. However, in his first start for the Partenopei, Milik went some way to proving his doubters wrong.
The Polish international instantly endeared himself to the Napoli faithful, scoring a brace in a 4-2 win over A.C. Milan at the San Paolo. If Milik can continue this form throughout his maiden Serie A campaign, the £27.20m paid to Ajax will be considered a fantastic re-investment of the Higuain fee by the club.
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