Missing: An Edinson and a Milos. Plus a Morning News Roundup.

Milos Krasic and Edinson Cavani were surely two nominees for players of the season by December. And somehow, by March, a mere three months later, both seem vague shadows of the empirical figures they once were. Fatigue and form may be an issue for the two attacking players, but unless Napoli and Juventus figure out how to restore verve to these men sorely lacking it at the present, they risk losing it all this season.

Both players began the season in similarly dazzling form. Both took their team on their shoulders and turned losses into draws and draws into wins, conjuring up points where no points should have been.

The Juve player has a mere five goals in Serie A this season, but his overall play has been crucial. His last goal, on the thirteenth of January, opened the scoring for the Bianconeri in a home game against Catania. His first goals were quite impressive, all coming in a hattrick on Matchday 5 in a home game against Cagliari. His other goal came in November, in a 2-0 victory over Genoa (The other goal, rather unsurprisingly, came from an Eduardo howler). Five goals, one hattrick, three teams: Catania, Cagliari, Genoa. None of the clubs he scored against have been particularly great, but Milos added so much more to the Juventus offense: speed, unpredictability, and drive. Perhaps the epitome of this came in the bianconeri’s 90^th minute winner over Lazio on matchday 16. His driving run into the box, after being released by a beautiful Momo Sissoko pass, enabled his side to win the match at the death, even if his shot is now credited as an own goal.

Cavani’s contributions to Napoli are exponentially more evident than Krasic’s for Juve, as evidenced by his 20 league goals this season (one behind current Capocannoniere Toto Di Natale). The Uruguayan has amassed a reputation for scoring last minute winners in a thrilling manner. On the nineteenth of December, he scored in the ninetieth minute to give Napoli the only goal of the game against Lecce; four days before, another in the last minute, letting Napoli win 1-0 over Steaua Bucharest in the Europa League. The Romanian side have had particularly bad luck against the Azzurri, going three up against the side at home before losing the lead and drawing at the death in the reverse fixture. And who scored in the ninetieth that game? None other than Edinson.

Of course, he has scored goals outside of the last few minutes of matches. A hattrick against Juve in early January; a double against Roma in December; another threesome against Sampdoria on January 30^th. Big goals in big games for a player who thrives on pressure. However, since his heroics against the capital team, Cavani has been missing in action. Oh he’s played. He just hasn’t scored.

Much like Krasic, in recent weeks, Cavani has been largely ineffective. They look like shadows of the players they were in the beginning of the season, when both clubs benefitted enormously from their presence on the team. It is perhaps no coincidence that Napoli’s and Juventus’ drop in form occurred just as their two talismen have tailed off. What would Napoli have given for a 90^th minute winner against Brescia yesterday? Or Juve for a goal, period, or even some attacking prowess?

In both players’ cases, it seems as though fatigue may be to blame. Milos has gone nearly two years without a break in football, going from the Russian season to the World Cup straight into Serie A. He and Cavani have both been so vital for their sides that they have hardly been rested: Cavani has missed just one game all season and stands at 2198 minutes played; Krasic has played 24 out of 28 games and has featured 1909 minutes. Not all is lost for the two- indubitably, they have had good-bordering-on-great campaigns until a few weeks ago. It is only since then that they’ve appeared normal instead of great.

The teams are thus in a dilemma: they could rest their best players, but they risk points by not having them feature. One thing is for certain, however: unless the two players get back into form, Napoli and Juventus may find themselves in much more trouble in the weeks to come. If anyone finds the missing form, please contact the Juventus Offside and the Napoli Offside. They’ll be thrilled.

Morning News Roundup:

• As was largely expected, Mimmo Di Carlo has been sacked from Sampdoria. Alberto Cavasin has been appointed to replace the former Chievo boss.
• Inter and Fiorentina are currently facing off in the final of the prestigious Viareggio Tournament. As of halftime, the nerazzurri are winning thanks to Dell’Agnello’s goal, the only one of the match.
• AC Milan midfielder Mathieu Flamini has defended his rough style of play, claiming it’s merely part of a defensive midfielder’s  play to be “a bit more rude”.
• Should Louis Van Gaal receive the sack from Bayern, the latest name to replace him is none other than… Marcello Lippi.
• Udinese starlet Alex Sanchez has stated that he is currently focused on the league with his side but has not committed his future to them, claiming that this summer, “we’ll see what happens.”

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Follow Julian on Twitter for Serie A news coverage, updates on new posts, and more, @JulianWCB.

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Category: Serie A