1997–98 S.S.C. Napoli season
| 1997–98 season | |||
| Chairman | Corrado Ferlaino | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Manager | Bortolo Mutti Carlo Mazzone Giovanni Galeone Vincenzo Montefusco | ||
| Serie A | 18th | ||
| Coppa Italia | Last 16 | ||
| Top goalscorer | Claudio Bellucci (10) | ||
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S.S.C. Napoli crashed out of Serie A following a disastrous season. It only clinched 14 points out of 34 matches, despite having the services of several experienced Serie A players. Napoli went through four coaches over the course of the season, and hardly took a point in the second half of the season. Given the disastrous form of the team, Claudio Bellucci's ten goals were impressive, while thought top scorer Igor Protti was one of the largest disappointments of the entire series. The lack of defensive skills cost Napoli many points, and more than two goals were conceded on average. This was despite Roberto Ayala's brilliance, which earned him a transfer to A.C. Milan.
Only eight years following Napoli's second title, the club seemed to be in terminal decline, with hard work being needed to return to the top domestic league. Given that the club had not been relegated since a bankruptcy in 1964, the relegation was a shock, by the extremely poor season.
Squad
Goalkeepers
Defenders
-   Roberto Ayala Roberto Ayala
-   Francesco Baldini Francesco Baldini
-   Luigi Malafronte Luigi Malafronte
-   Mauro Facci Mauro Facci
-  .svg.png) Bertrand Crasson Bertrand Crasson
-   Raffaele Sergio Raffaele Sergio
-   Luigi Panarelli Luigi Panarelli
-   William Prunier William Prunier
-   Guglielmo Stendardo Guglielmo Stendardo
-   Mirko Taccola Mirko Taccola
-   Mirko Conte Mirko Conte
-   Marco Zamboni Marco Zamboni
Midfielders
-   Raffaele Longo Raffaele Longo
-   Francesco Turrini Francesco Turrini
-   Roberto Goretti Roberto Goretti
-   Massimiliano Esposito Massimiliano Esposito
-   Giuseppe Giannini Giuseppe Giannini
-   Fabio Rossitto Fabio Rossitto
-   Reynald Pedros Reynald Pedros
-   Gennaro Scarlato Gennaro Scarlato
-   Massimiliano Allegri Massimiliano Allegri
-   Aljoša Asanović Aljoša Asanović
-   Angelo Cimadomo Angelo Cimadomo
-   Luca Altomare Luca Altomare
Attackers
Serie A
Matches
| 2 | Napoli | 2–1 | Empoli | |
| Bellucci  33' Protti  48' | C. Esposito  77' | 
| 5 | Roma | 6–2 | Napoli | |
| Candela  16' Gautieri  34' Balbo  51, 60, 89' Di Francesco  53' | Altomare  71' Bellucci  87' (pen.) | 
| 10 | Napoli | 1–1 | Fiorentina | |
| Turrini  34' | Firicano  28' | 
| 13 | Sampdoria | 6–3 | Napoli | |
| Boghossian  35' Montella  42' (pen.)  61'  90' (pen.) Klinsmann  73' Laigle  76' | Bellucci  15' Protti  70' Rossitto  78' | 
| 19 | Empoli | 5–0 | Napoli | |
| C. Esposito  24' Cappellini  37' Pane  50' Florijančič  70, 75' | 
| 26 | Napoli | 2–4 | Lecce | |
| Protti  35' (pen.) Altomare  73' | Casale  2' Palmieri  29' Ayala  75' (o.g.) Atelkin  90 + 3' | 
| 27 | Fiorentina | 4–0 | Napoli | |
| Batistuta  40, 67' Robbiati  80' Edmundo  86' | 
Topscorers
Sources
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