Napoli received some unpleasant news a few days ahead of the start of Serie A. Romelu Lukaku endured a high-grade injury on his left thigh's rectus femoris during one of Napoli's preseason matches against Olympiacos and has begun rehab already. The club confirmed the problem officially but would not comment on how long he would be gone.
Italian media are suggesting at least three months on the sidelines, more if he does require an operation. Playing in the 2-1 victory over the Greek side, the Belgian forward suffered an injury during the first half, fell to the ground immediately, and had to be substituted.
The direct effects on the team
Loss of Lukaku makes Antonio Conte remake his plan on the first matchday. Loss of a forward of Lukaku's caliber is something difficult to replace. Napoli did sign Lorenzo Lucca from Udinese, but Napoli will still have to return to the market maybe to compensate for the loss. It’s not replacing the goal or the points on paper. It’s losing an experienced forward who is used to playing under the spotlight and has experience playing in European competition.
Napoli's Serie A return is next Saturday against Sassuolo. Additionally, the team has still the Champions League, Coppa Italia, and Italian Super Cup to face. With this congested fixture list, losing such an important goal threat at this specific juncture is something the Conte-led team cannot afford. He will need to compensate with pace, come up with collective solutions, and work with the available team in a bid to plug the gap of the Belgian.
What comes next
And what's next Meanwhile, the medical doctors will continue checking on Lukaku’s recovery process in an attempt to see if he will absolutely require surgery. If the three months still apply, he might even miss the rest of the Champions League group stage and some fixtures in the Serie A. If it takes longer, the greater burden remains on the whole squad and on the club’s management, who might be pushed into deciding whether they should hold on to what they’ve got or head back on the market before the window is shut.