A goal that is worth a victory, but above all a rebirth. At the Bentegodi the Naples snatches three very important points by beating 2-1Greece Verona, thanks to the network of Romelu Lukaku in the 96th minute. Immediately after the final whistle, the Belgian striker appears before the microphones of DAZN visibly moved and turns the interview into an open-hearted confession.
"The goal is incredibly hard, but first and foremost I'm happy for the team," Lukaku says, his voice breaking. "We've prepared very well this week. Football has given me so much in my life." Then his story becomes deeper and more painful. "I suffered not only from the injury, but also from the loss of my father. I'm going forward for Napoli and for my family." The sentence that hits like a punch is the one that closes his outburst: "Before I arrived in this place, I was dead."
The Italian dressing room huddles together around their center forward. Juan Jesus is clear in emphasizing the Belgian's human and technical strength. "Lukaku suffered for four months, and we missed him," explains the defender. "He's a professional who gave us a hand in our time of need." He then delves into the incident in which he was involved: "The yellow card? I think it was offside beforehand; it's unlikely I'd make a mistake."
The Brazilian finally broadens his perspective on the season and the team. "I don't like making excuses for injuries. With a full squad, we would have been a nuisance to many teams. Last year, we showed who we are. We also brought in De Bruyne, one of the strongest players I've ever seen, and discovered young players like Vergara and Gutierrez."
I don't know if the goal truly represents a rebirth, but Lukaku was emotional and the team pulled together, but I think the problem isn't over. Many things have changed in this place, we're curious and we hope that the young players aren't ready yet... but you can see their desire.