CorSport – Napoli: De Bruyne dazzles and scores, KDB reborn | OneFootball

CorSport – Napoli: De Bruyne runs, plays, and scores! The new life of KDB…

Not just the goal or that extraordinary through ball with which he set up Rrahmani in front of Sassuolo's goal in the first half: after Saturday's match in Reggio Emilia, and after the first victory with the championship badge on their shirts, Conte highlighted De Bruyne's intensity and his inclination to focus on the non-possession phase. Napoli has acquired a superstar who has reached the end of an extraordinary career with a trophy cabinet that would make a king envious, and after a month and a half of work, they have also found a player who fits perfectly into his coach's style of play. All aggression and sacrifice. Maximum attention to balance. Pressures and pressing. That KDB was a champion was known to everyone, of course, but the ability to sacrifice and the humility he has shown in this early phase of his Neapolitan experience have also facilitated his transformation in the name of the Fab Four: it's no coincidence he was the player who covered the most distance without the ball at the Mapei Stadium. A fundamental element and especially the opportunity to admire Kev, McTominay, Anguissa, and Lobotka together. A luxury. A luxury that costs effort, rhythm, energy: all things the 34-year-old kid from City is eager to put at the team's service.

This is a fundamental concept. The greatness of football combined with that of spirit: Napoli has discovered them day by day, not suddenly. Indeed: those who have seen De Bruyne in action from the first moment of the training camp in Dimaro, and from the first of countless kilometers run, immediately imagined the caliber and depth of the character. Kevin has arrived to win, at least to try, and from the height of a class and football intelligence evidently above average, he has perfectly assumed the role of leader. But a leader is also a totem capable of delivering phrases like this: "I am the one who must adapt to my teammates and not them to me." The testimony that the sacred fire is alive more than ever.

Apart from physical intensity, KDB enriched his first showcase in Serie A by exuding talent and plays of absolute value. And then, in the final crescendo, the first goal at the inaugural clap. In the twelfth minute of the second half: a De Bruyne-style free kick, just to explain to Italy that the trademark is registered and the right foot is blessed by the gods. A venomous arrow shot like archers do, from high to low, a drop of rain that brought a deluge of joy. That put an end to the game and marked the beginning of the Italian experience after ten years in the Premier League.

He was the most anticipated man, ever since the second following the announcement of his arrival, and the fans have done nothing but demonstrate it since his entry onto the field, even on Saturday at the Mapei. A stadium all in blue, ten thousand Neapolitan fans in attendance, and the admiration of the opponents crowned it all. De Bruyne runs, plays, scores. And unites: in the name of football.

Carlo Gioia

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.