Napoli could drop Lukaku from Champions League and Serie A squad lists after injury | OneFootball

Monday’s reports claim that Napoli could be tempted to drop Romelu Lukaku from both their Champions League and Serie A squad lists as he is set to miss a significant chunk of the first half of the 2025-26 through injury.

The Belgian came off injured during a 2-1 pre-season friendly win over Olympiacos on Thursday evening with an apparent thigh injury.

Napoli confirmed on Monday that Lukaku has reported for assessment, and that the tests have revealed a “high-grade injury to the rectus femoris muscle in his thigh.”

CASTEL DI SANGRO, ITALY – AUGUST 14: Romelu Lukaku of Napoli lies on the pitch after being injured during the pre-season friendly match between Napoli and Olympiacos at Stadio Teofilo Patini on August 14, 2025 in Castel di Sangro, Italy. (Photo by Giuseppe Bellini/Getty Images)

Initial reports indicate that the 32-year-old will be out of action until November at the earliest, potentially even longer.

As a result, there have already been suggestions that Napoli could return to the transfer market to find a new centre-forward to compete with Lorenzo Lucca, the only other recognised senior striker in Antonio Conte’s squad as things stand.

Joshua Zirkzee is among the frontrunners, with reports that Jean-Philippe Mateta, Nikola Krstovic, Artem Dovbyk and Andrea Pinamonti are also of interest.

Joshua Zirkzee of Manchester United gestures during the warm up prior to the Premier League match between Liverpool FC and Manchester United FC at Anfield on January 05, 2025 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)

Sky: Napoli could drop Lukaku from official squad lists

Given that Lukaku is set to miss at least three months at the start of the 2025-26 campaign, Sky Sport Italia claim that Napoli could potentially drop him from their Champions League and Serie A squads.

PARMA, ITALY – MAY 18: Antonio Conte, Head Coach of Napoli, looks on prior to the Serie A match between Parma and Napoli at Stadio Ennio Tardini on May 18, 2025 in Parma, Italy. (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)

Serie A rules state that clubs must have no more than 25 players in their official squad list, at least eight of whom must be homegrown, and at least four who have graduated through the club’s own academy.

It is a similar situation with UEFA, whose rules state that clubs competing in the Champions League must have a squad limit of 25 players, eight of whom are ‘locally trained’, and again, four of them must be ‘club trained’.

There is an opportunity for clubs to make alterations to their squad lists midway through the season, which means that if Lukaku is left off the Partenopei squad at the start of the 2025-26 season, he could still return in the new year.