Napoli confirm injury blow to key attacker for Serie A run-in | OneFootball

Napoli have confirmed that winger David Neres was forced to stop during training on Friday as a result of a muscular injury, and now the Brazilian looks set to miss out on the team’s upcoming test against Monza on Saturday.

Napoli confirm Neres injury blow

The Partenopei issued a short statement informing supporters of the injury, which read: “David Neres suffered a muscular strain at the end of today’s training. His condition will be evaluated soon.”

Napoli’s forward David Neres celebrates a goal during the Italian Serie A soccer match SSC Napoli vs Como 1907 at Diego Armando Maradona stadium in Naples, Italy, 04 October 2024. EPA-EFE/CESARE ABBATE

Initial reports from the likes of La Gazzetta dello Sport suggest that Neres will be ruled out of the Monza match at a minimum. The 28-year-old also missed a run of five matches with a muscular injury in his hamstring over the course of February and March.

He has lined up as a starter in all of Napoli’s matches since then, and in nine matches leading up to his hamstring injury.

The last time Antonio Conte had to do without Neres through injury, he opted for a change in system to a 3-5-2, with Giacomo Raspadori partnering Romelu Lukaku in attack.

It remains to be seen whether the coach will opt for a change of shape again as a result of his injury, or whether he will play a different player in Neres’s starting position on the left wing. Raspadori would still be the leading candidate to come into the side if that were the case.