With FC Barcelona drawing S.S.C. Napoli, it’s hard not to think of the few ties that bind the two clubs. Diego Maradona is of course the leading name. For a player so revered for his exploits on the field with Argentina and Napoli, his time at Barcelona was much smaller and less noticeable of a chapter in his storied career.
From 1982 to 1984, Diego Maradona terrorized La Liga defenses for a Barcelona team that had varying levels of success in a rather drab era for the Catalans. His first season at the club saw the team finish in 4th in the table, though they did win the Copa del Rey and Copa de la Liga. The Argentine was the team’s leading scorer with 11 goals in the campaign. The 1983-84 season was an improvement to 3rd in La Liga, but the team led by Maradona, Bernd Schuster, and Migueli had to settle for the Spanish Super Cup.
Barcelona’s manager while Maradona was at the club was César Luis Menotti. Menotti was also the man that left Maradona off the 1978 World Cup-winning squad, citing his young age as the reasoning for the omission. The duo’s season and a half at Barcelona (Menotti took over in March of 1983) were left with the same feelings of what if for Maradona’s legacy.
In seven years with Napoli, Maradona won two Serie A titles, one Coppa Italia, one UEFA Cup, and one Supercoppa Italiana. He is still considered the greatest to ever play for Napoli, even though Marek Hamsík and Dries Mertens have overtaken him as the club’s top goalscorer. To a lesser degree, Pepe Reina is also remembered much more for his time with Napoli than his time with Barcelona’s first team. Laurent Blanc is the other player who played for both teams, though he played just one season for each.
The two teams have never met in official competition with real stakes, so it will be unchartered territory when the two meet in February. New manager Gennaro Gattuso and veteran Dries Mertens should dictate more of the narrative, but Fabián Ruiz is the player that Culés should have their eye on. He has been linked to a move to the Camp Nou this summer, even though he just signed a new and expensive deal with the Italian club. His left foot, work rate, and ability to affect a game on both ends make him the player to fear for now and potentially be excited about later. He is the kind of hard-working midfielder with some technical skill that gives Barcelona trouble, and the match-up between Ruiz and Frenkie de Jong is as good as any in the Round of 16.
