Napoli Football Formation

Starting Lineup

Olivera · Di Lorenzo · Buongiorno · Rrahmani · Gilmour · Lukaku · Raspadori · D. Neres · Anguissa · Okafor · Meret

Napoli plays a high press, vertical style of football using a 2-5-3 formation. The team aims to win it back high up the pitch and play through the lines with speed. This lineup focuses on winning the second ball and using the central area to dominate the game. They look to squeeze the space and force a long ball from the opposition to keep control.

Meret guards the goal as the lone goalkeeper. The defense consists of a back two with Buongiorno and Rrahmani acting as the central defenders. Buongiorno and Rrahmani play out from the back to start attacks and progress through the thirds. They must hold the line and cover space to stop attackers from hitting in behind. These ball playing defenders must stay calm to play short from the back and find the feet of the midfielders.

The midfield unit is a massive five-man block to compress the midfield. Di Lorenzo and Olivera play as a double pivot to protect the two defenders and deny the pivot of the opponent. Anguissa and Gilmour operate as two central midfielders who carry the ball forward and win the second ball. Anguissa uses his strength to drive into the center of the pitch. Raspadori plays as an attacking ten behind the striker to connect the defensive and attacking lines and play through the lines.

The attacking front line consists of three players working in close combinations. Lukaku acts as a target man who can hold up the ball and win the header to flick on to his teammates. Okafor plays as an inverted winger on the left to cut inside and create chances in tight spaces. D. Neres stays wide on the right to spread wide and whip it in to the box. This front three works to hit in behind on the transition and create runs in behind.

Napoli gains a huge advantage through numerical superiority in midfield. The five players in the center allow them to win the second ball and recycle possession effectively. Another strength is the ability to create wide overloads when the wingers and midfielders work together to stretch the defence. They also use the speed of transition to break quickly and find the feet of the striker.

This 2-5-3 formation is built to dominate the central zones and press aggressively in a high block. It is best suited for games against teams that struggle to play out from the back under pressure.