AG4IN!
Once again Napoli, once again Champions. The summer of 2025 has brought Napoli its fourth Scudetto, the second of the De Laurentiis Era. Let’s relive the most important moments of the team’s run, month after month, all the way to their Scudetto win.
In a way, the season first began on 26 June when Antonio Conte made his debut as Napoli’s new coach at Palazzo Reale. Choosing him was a far-sighted decision, given that 11 months later the new coach would hold up the sceptre and sit on the throne as Champion of Italy. The slogan adopted by Conte was simple yet very effective: “Amma fatica’,” meaning “we need to work hard.” A phrase that turned into a mantra in Naples. The team got to work in July at the traditional training camps in Dimaro first and then Castel di Sangro. Tough, intense training sessions that clearly showed what the “Conte method” is all about. Loyalty to the team, group identity, full attention and self-sacrifice. Discipline that under the scorching summer sun began to show a group that was becoming a strong, single unit.
AUGUST
In August Napoli completed their summer preparation at the training camp in Castel di Sangro. Conte’s work was complemented by the club’s diligent activities: thanks to large investments, it made major purchases during the transfer window. Napoli signed Scottish players Billy Gilmour and Scott McTominay, Brazilian player David Neres and the prolific Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku, Conte’s historic forward, as well as Alessandro Buongiorno, who had already been at Napoli since July. They would all later play a key role in winning the Scudetto. The season started off with some setbacks, as Napoli (still without the later signings) lost to Verona. However, that defeat marked the start of the team’s comeback. In the last week of August, Napoli beat all the teams from the Via Emilia at the Stadio Maradona. First Bologna (3-0) and then Parma (2-1) with an outstanding comeback towards the end of the match with Lukaku’s first official goal at Napoli and then with the goal that sealed their victory, scored by Andre-Frank Anguissa. That was when Napoli truly started showing what they were all about.
SEPTEMBER
After the international break, Napoli won an away match against Cagliari in mid-September. It was a landslide victory that ended 4-0. Captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo scored the opener, his first goal of the season, which set the tone for the rest of the match. Then Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Lukaku sealed the victory. Towards the end of the match, Buongiorno also scored his first goal at Napoli. The following week, the team had their first major match of the season: an away match against Juventus. Napoli were able to keep up with an ambitious Juventus. Most importantly, in that match McTominay made his debut for Napoli and showed his assertiveness and how decisive he could be in the league. The match ended 0-0, making it the team’s fourth match unbeaten in a row, which then turned into the fifth on the last Sunday of the month. We beat Monza 2-0 at the Stadio Maradona, with one goal by Matteo Politano and a second one by Kvara. With 13 points, Napoli were ahead in first place for the first time in the season, with the other teams behind.
OCTOBER
The hunt for blue October. This was a great month for Napoli, as they won all their matches. First against Como at the Maradona. It was a day to remember because McTominay scored his very first goal in Serie A: it only took him a minute to turn and unleash a precise, right-footed diagonal shot and score. This was just a small taste of what he would go on to do, as he later played a key role in Napoli’s run to the Scudetto. David Neres also scored a goal on his debut, after being served a perfect assist by Lukaku. Before that, Big Rom had also scored his third personal goal. The match ended 3-1. After the second international break, the team’s next match was in Empoli. We won 1-0 with a penalty kicked by Kvara after an hour. The team reached the same result in a home match one week later against Lecce, thanks to a goal by Di Lorenzo fifteen minutes before the end of the match. The last scene of October took place at San Siro against Milan. It was a Tuesday, a mid-week matchday. The lights at San Siro were all blue. Napoli were unforgiving against Milan, with one goal by Lukaku and one by Kvara. The match ended 2-0. After 10 matchdays, Napoli made themselves heard and extended their lead, with 25 points. This was the first time the team started to slowly pull away.
NOVEMBER
November marked Napoli’s first defeat in a home match. Atalanta beat them 3-0. They deservedly won, as Conte acknowledged Atalanta’s greater quality throughout the match. However, he sent a clear message: “They have been playing together for many years, while we are just getting started. Our goal is to reach their level in the reverse fixture.” In hindsight, those words truly showed the coach’s great far-sightedness. On 10 November the team was back at San Siro, this time against Inter. It was the match between the two teams that would go on to compete for the Scudetto. Mctominay immediately scored the opener, showing how important his goals could be. Then came Hakan Calhanoglu’s equaliser. What followed was a very competitive match on every move. The final result was a draw and it gave Napoli some new momentum. The final Sunday of November marked what is known as the “Derby of the Sun,” as it was called in classic football literature. Napoli v Roma at the Stadio Maradona. Napoli won the match with a goal by Roma’s former player Lukaku. He scored in his own way with a wide stretch of the leg, proving that he is the one who scores the goals that really matter. When it is his goal, Napoli always win. Big Rom was becoming unstoppable.
DECEMBER
On the first day of December, Napoli were off to a good start. They won away against Torino with a goal by McTominay after thirty minutes. Three precious points that meant that the team were once again alone in first place. But there was a major threat right around the corner. One week later their adversary was Lazio in a home match. A balanced game that Napoli deserved to win, but in the end, Gustav Isaksen scored, with Lazio winning 1-0. It was a very bitter outcome, which was however followed by a great comeback by the team. That was when Napoli began its longest streak of victories of the season. First in Udine, where Napoli first conceded a goal in the first half, but then in the second half equalised and then took the lead with Lukaku, Neres and Anguissa. Final score: 3-1. What followed was another away match the following week, this time at the Stadio Marassi against Genoa. We won 2-1 with two goals by Anguissa and Amir Rrahmani. The month drew to a close with a home match against Venezia. It was a very complex match, but Napoli eventually found their trump card! Conte subbed Giacomo Raspadori on, who 10 minutes before the end of the match made a powerful left-footed shot, scoring. The whole stadium went wild. All that excitement marked the end of the calendar year. Napoli were approaching 2025, a very promising new year.
JANUARY
Napoli’s first match of the new calendar year, in January, was played in Florence, at the Stadio Franchi. Fiorentina v Napoli was a very exciting match, with many emotions and goals for us. Conte’s team dominated the entire match. First Neres scored an amazing opener, after going past half of Fiorentina’s defenders, with a right-footed shot just under the crossbar. It was one of the most spectacular goals of the season. In the second half Lukaku and McTominay scored too, with the game ending 3-0. But January was also when Kvaratskelia said goodbye to Napoli and joined PSG. Napoli, despite no longer having Kvara, harnessed all the group’s potential. The team beat Verona in a home match and started preparing for the crucial back-to-back matches against Atalanta and Juventus respectively. On 18 January, in Bergamo, Atalanta first took the lead with a goal by Mateo Retegui. Then, however, Napoli made a great comeback. First the equaliser: a devastating left-footed shot by Politano. And then, towards the end of the first half, a second goal by McTominay after a successful run-in. At the start of the second half, Ademola Lookman scored the equaliser for Atalanta. It was a breath-taking match. But then came the decisive goal, fifteen minutes before the end of the match: Lukaku headed it in, setting the final score at 3-2. Once they returned to Naples, the team on the bus were greeted in Capodichino by a huge crowd cheering and singing about winning the Scudetto. The same people who filled the Stadio Maradona down to the last seat to watch their team play against Juventus on the night of 25 January. Juventus’ Kolo Muani scored the opener in the first half. But in the second half, it was only Napoli who were on the offensive and dominated the rest of the match. After an hour there was the equaliser by Anguissa who headed it in, followed ten minutes later by a goal by McTominay who skipped past Manuel Locatelli in the box and was fouled. Penalty. Lukaku was cold and precise: 2-1 for us. Napoli beat Juventus and after 22 matchdays the team were in first place, three points ahead of Inter and 7 ahead of Atalanta. This was the first time in the season they were truly pulling away.
FEBRUARY
February is both the shortest and the toughest month for Napoli. On the first Sunday of the month, the team dominated the first part of the match at the Stadio Olimpico against Roma, taking the lead with a goal by Leonardo Spinazzola. Then many chances were wasted and the team conceded a goal right at the end of the match, after 93 minutes, scored by Jose Tasende Angelino. A bitter match that will take a toll on the team. Napoli then drew with Udinese at home and conceded an equaliser against Lazio at the Stadio Olimpico, again in the final minutes of the match. On the last matchday of February, Napoli had an away match at Lake Como, but there was nothing romantic about that. Napoli were overwhelmed by the quality of Cesc Fabregas’ team and lost 2-1 at the Stadio Sinigaglia. It was Napoli’s first defeat in 2025, but it would also be their last one over the six following months. Because after that setback, the team became unstoppable, and started treading the path that would eventually lead them to their great Scudetto win in May.
MARCH
On the first day of March, Napoli had to face their biggest rival of the season. Napoli and Inter were the two teams that competed to the very end for the Scudetto. They squared off at the wonderful Stadio Maradona. The moment of truth had finally come. Inter scored the opener after twenty minutes with a masterful free kick by Federico Di Marco. From that moment on, however, Napoli dominated the match and kept Inter on their side of the field. The pressure was striking, there were many chances, with a culmination in the final minutes of the match. Minute 87: Stanislav Lobotka made a run-in with the ball all the way to the box and somehow saw Philip Billing, who had just been subbed on a few minutes earlier. The Danish Viking skipped past the opposing team’s defence and made it 1-1, with an entire people going wild. That goal was a true turning point for Napoli. Antonio Conte, once the match was over, let out his battle cry: “After this match we need to realise that we can achieve anything we set our minds to.” Where there’s will, there’s a way. And with this positive attitude, Napoli beat Fiorentina the following Sunday, again at the Stadio Maradona, 2-1 with the goals by Lukaku and Raspadori. Jack Raspadori would later become the key player in Napoli’s rise to the top in the final part of the season. There was a bland draw against Venezia in the middle of this successful streak. However, that draw with Venezia would keep the season alive because in the evening Inter beat Atalanta, which started falling behind. So at that point the two clear contenders were Napoli and Inter. In the last match of the month, in the meantime, Napoli faced the other team from Milan, the Rossoneri, at the Stadio Maradona. Napoli took the lead (2-0) after less than twenty minutes with the goals by Politano and Lukaku. Alex Meret makes a huge contribution in the second half by saving a penalty. Milan scored a goal towards the end of the match, but Conte’s warriors were able to endure the pain and won that crucial match. Just two more months were left before the crowning of the Champions of Italy.
APRIL
The first day of April was a Monday. The Monday match was played at the Stadio Dall’Ara in Bologna. Napoli first took the lead with an extraordinary, unstoppable run by Anguissa. Bologna equalised in the second half with Dan Ndoye, with a masterful backheel goal. The match ended 1-1. But good news would later come from Bologna. Napoli played again on Monday against Empoli in a home match. An impressive 3-0 with a goal by Lukaku and two extraordinary goals by McTominay. The Scotsman was slowly becoming the hero of the fans and his aura was extremely bright on the Holy Saturday before Easter. Napoli won in Monza with a header by Scott fifteen minutes before the end of the match. An invaluable goal that was the first sign of a turning point. Remember Bologna? Well, the next day, 20 April, on Easter Sunday, Inter were first on the table and were about to face Bologna. Minute 94, what happened became a crucial part of Napoli’s run. Riccardo Orsolini's bicycle kick at minute 94 reached the far corner of the goal, sealing the win for Bologna. The cries of joy could be heard from Bologna all the way to Naples. Napoli was tied with Inter in first place. And that was not all, because on the last Sunday of April Inter lost again in the afternoon to Roma. Napoli’s match was later that evening against Torino. Once again, McTominay handled everything, scoring two goals that took us to Paradise. Napoli again in first place, three points ahead of Inter. On that glorious Sunday, Scott was nicknamed by everyone in Naples “McFratm,” which showed the close bond between him and his fans and became known the world over and that will forever be remembered.
MAY
Then came the May of Monuments. The crucial month to decide who the Scudetto would go to. Napoli, at the time in first place, had to take on the team of the “Via del Mare,” Lecce. On Saturday 3 May, Napoli played away against them. Napoli took the lead with a wonderful free kick by Raspadori, thus securing a precious victory after a great performance. Inter were still three points behind. There were four points left before the end of the season. These would be the four days of Napoli. On the evening of 11 May, Napoli’s opponents were Genoa, at the Stadio Maradona. It was a challenging and balanced match. Napoli scored with Lukaku at the start of the match, but Genoa responded and equalised towards the end of the first half. In the second half, Raspadori made the crowd go wild. But then on their last gasp, Genoa equalised again with a goal by Johan Vasquez. There were only five minutes left in the match and the final score was 2-2. Napoli remained 1 point ahead of Inter. The final matchday of the season was going to be as exciting as a thriller. On Sunday 18 May, the two matches were going to be played at the same time, making it a night of great anticipation. Napoli failed to score against Parma. Inter went back and forth with Lazio. During halftime, Inter were ahead both on the pitch and on the table. The tension could be felt throughout the whole match, with a rollercoaster of emotions from one pitch to the other. At minute 90 Napoli were awarded a penalty kick after a foul on Neres, which was then revoked following an unclear tackle by Giovanni Simeone. But at San Siro the penalty kick was awarded to Lazio. Pedro scored the penalty. The match ended 2-2 at San Siro and 0-0 at the Stadio Tardini. Napoli were still first on the table. The team celebrated under the curva in Parma. Their cry was as powerful as it was booming: one more left! One more step closer to victory. During the press conference, Antonio Conte issued his edict: “Let’s get this Scudetto!”. History demanded a date, the fourth in the Napoli legend. On Friday, 23 May 2025, Napoli v Cagliari was played at the Stadio Maradona. A match that began from the early hours of dawn. Naples was invaded and filled with fans’ flags and passion. There were fans everywhere from Fuorigrotta to Piazza Plebiscito. The rest was written in the sacred scriptures of football. McFratm melted the blood of Saint Januarius with a masterful bicycle kick that has already become a mythical icon. Lukaku in the second half showed all the strength and technique of a top player and brought the Holy Grail to Neapolitan Olympus. Final score: 2-0. Napoli became the Champions of Italy for the fourth time. De Laurentiis and Conte huddled tightly in the middle of the pitch in a symbiotic embrace that celebrated a historic triumph and simultaneously opened the door to a bright future. The following Monday there was an open-top bus parade in Via Caracciolo to celebrate the Napoli champions. Millions of people filled Earth and Heaven united by a single chant. Proud of a wonderful new Scudetto shield on their chests. Toward the evocative backdrop of a new season that will mark the club’s historic 100th anniversary.
