Op-Ed: Why Milik must start for Napoli vs. Juventus in Scudetto showdown

Jordan Russell (@JordRuss96)
21 apr 2018

Napoli coach Maurizio Sarri possesses one of the strongest squads in Italy, both in terms of depth and quality. Therefore, it is somewhat surprising that he is so often accused by fans and journalists of not rotating his players enough, and making the most of all the options available to him.

Given the constant injury woes of Arkadiusz Milik, his hand has been forced to a certain extent in the attacking third of the pitch, hence his decision to transform Dries Mertens into a centre-forward over the course of the past 18 months.

However, now that the 24-year-old Polish striker is fit again, it is imperative that Sarri finds a way of getting the best out of his qualities, which no other player in the Partenopei roster possesses. Indeed, his physical presence can be an invaluable asset to his teammates, who have not given up hope of landing their first Scudetto since 1990.

Therefore, it is essential that he starts against Juventus at the Allianz Stadium tomorrow night. Giorgio Chiellini and his colleagues have shown repeatedly that they can deal with the threat posed by the likes of Mertens and Lorenzo Insigne, which is why Sarri must now look to explore different avenues of beating the Bianconeri.

While it is unlikely that the Neapolitan tactician will be tempted by the idea of switching formation from 4-3-3 to 4-2-3-1, there is no reason why the former Ajax and Bayer Leverkusen hitman should not be included in the starting XI. He has been in excellent form since his latest comeback from injury and could be the man who inspires his team to do what many considered impossible just seven days ago.