In the early morning of July 1, Beijing time, former Serie A champion Napoli officially announced that six players, including Zielinski, officially left the team. Among them, Gollini, Traore and Dendoncker have all returned to their respective clubs on loan, while Zielinski and Dem have left on free agency when their contracts expire. Of course, the two are not worried about going home, especially Zielinski, who has confirmed that he wants to join the Nerazzurri Inter Milan.
Last season, Zielinski played 35 games in all competitions for Napoli, scoring four goals and two assists, including three goals and two assists in 28 Serie A games, averaging 0.82 tackles, 0.32 interceptions and 0.54 clearances per game, making 1,156 passes and 48 key passes, with a pass completion rate of 88%.
Of course, the highlight of the Polish midfielder is the 2022/23 season, when he played 48 games in all competitions for Napoli, handing over a quasi-double-double of seven goals and 10 assists, including three goals and eight assists in 37 Serie A games, and was one of the biggest contributors to Napoli's rematch to win the Serie A title after 33 years.
As a midfielder, Zielinski has excellent technique at his feet, good pace and first-class passing, as well as a certain level of defensive interception, can play in multiple positions in midfield, and can even play as a full-back and wing-back, making him an extremely versatile player. His ability to break free from pressing and dribbling past opposition defences was impressive, and his first-class playmaking tandem also gave Napoli and Poland a significant boost in midfield attack. In short, Zelinsky's technical characteristics are very much in line with Inter's 352 tactical system. With Mkhitaryan at an advanced age, the arrival of Zielinski is enough to ensure the Nerazzurri's midfield competitiveness. The point is, it's still for nothing.
In fact, Inter were able to waive the 30-year-old midfielder's visa, thanks to Napoli FC and their president, De Laurentiis. As a mainstay in midfield, Napoli clearly want Zielinski to stay at the Maradona Stadium. As early as the 2022/23 season, Napoli opened contract renewal talks, but the two sides did not negotiate. It is worth mentioning that in order to stay in Naples, Zelinsky even refused a three-year contract offered by the Saudi side with an annual salary of up to 12 million euros.
But Napoli and the Germans' stinginess finally gave Inter the opportunity to take advantage of the situation and reached an agreement with Zielinski to join for free in the summer. In this case, Napoli restarted the contract renewal negotiations and offered a new contract for one year with an annual salary of 5 million euros, and was willing to add a 20 million euro liquidated damages clause to the contract. However, in the face of a decided, Zielinski, Napoli's lack of sincerity to retain finally failed, and the Polish midfielder's adventure at the Maradona Stadium was over.
Now, Zielinski, who has officially ended his European Championship journey, will sign with Inter as a free agent. Before becoming an Inter player, he also updated his social media to express his gratitude to the Napoli club and fans. Since joining in August 2016, he has played for Napoli for eight seasons, scoring 51 goals and providing 46 assists in 364 appearances, helping the team to the Coppa Italia and Serie A titles. For Zelinsky, this is undoubtedly a fond memory.